Nearly half of children with autism have eloped from their caregivers. In assessing elopement, the initial functional analytic results of this case study found positive reinforcement in the form of attention and access to tangibles were the maintaining variables. Functional communication training (FCT) in combination with delay fading was utilized to increase communication and decrease elopement. Results indicated that communication was consistent, elopement remained low, and the child learned to wait.
Keywords: Autism; Delay fading; Elopement; FCT.