Program Information
Developer and contact
The Lovaas Model was developed in the Psychology Department of the University of California–Los Angeles under the direction of O. Ivar Lovaas, Ph.D. Clinic and consultation-based services are currently available through the Lovaas Institute (http://www.lovaas.com/contact.php).
Scope of use
The Lovaas Institute currently operates 12 centers nationwide and has certified consultants across the country. In addition, 11 sites around the world were chosen to participate in research originally funded by the National Institute of Mental Health to replicate the research published by Lovaas. The results of the research are being analyzed as part of the Multi-Site Young Autism Grant.
Teaching
During the first stages of the intervention, the main method of teaching is discrete trial training, which includes brief periods of instruction when a teacher cues a specific behavior, assists the child in providing an appropriate response, and provides reinforcement to the child. As children progress, therapists gradually increase the emphasis on instruction in less structured or more natural settings, such as peer play and classrooms.5
The early stages of the intervention focus on reducing behaviors that interfere with learning (e.g., self-stimulatory and aggressive behaviors), teaching appropriate replacement behaviors, and teaching prerequisite skills necessary for subsequent progress (such as requesting, toy play, imitation, following simple instructions). As a child progresses, instruction advances to focus on development of expressive and receptive language skills, followed by social and conversation skills, such as topic maintenance and asking appropriate questions. Finally, pre-academic skills such as early reading and writing and observational learning skills are taught, with programming for generalization of all skills to preschool and other community settings.6
A typical therapy session lasts two to three hours. Short periods of structured time are devoted to a task, such as appropriate toy play or following instructions, and each session is followed by a short break. A longer break is provided at the end of every hour and used for incidental teaching or generalization activities.
The intervention team consists of one-to-one instructors, trainers, and supervisors. A team of three to five trained instructors delivers the majority of teaching in a child’s home. One or two instructors on the team are responsible for training other instructors as well as monitoring the child’s progress. All members of the intervention team are supervised by a case supervisor and program director.7
Cost8
One study estimates initial costs that range between $45,575 and $69,050 annually.9
5 Lovaas, O. I., & Smith, T. (2003). Early and intensive behavioral intervention in autism. In A. Kazdin & J. Weisz (Eds.), Evidence-based psychotherapies for children and adolescents (pp. 325–340). New York: Guilford Press.
6 Smith, T., Mruzek, D. W., & Peyton, R. T. (2008). A study in perseverance: The emergence of early intensive behavioral intervention. In E. Cippani (Ed.), Triumphs in early autism treatment (pp. 151–170). New York: Springer.
7 The Lovaas Institute: http://www.lovaas.com/services_clinic.php.
8 The WWC converted costs to 2010 dollars using the consumer price index.
9 Jacobson, J. W., Mulick, J. A., & Green, G. (1998). Cost-benefit estimates for early intensive behavioral intervention for young children with autism—general model and single state case. Behavioral Interventions, 13(4), 201–226.