Examination of a One-Trial Multiple Stimulus Preference Assessment

There are several preference assessment formats that effectively determine reinforcers; however, educators and clinicians working with individuals with autism and other disabilities note that lack of time is a main barrier to frequently assessing client preference in applied settings (Graff & Karsten, 2012). Research has evaluated briefer methods of assessment (DeLeon & Iwata, 1996; DeLeon et al., 2001; Mason et al., 1989) to determine reinforcers. DeLeon et al. (2001) compared the high-preference stimulus determined in a paired-stimulus preference assessment to the stimulus selected in a brief daily multiple-stimulus without replacement preference assessment; they found that the stimulus identified in the brief assessment maintained a higher response rate when compared to the longer format stimulus, suggesting a brief assessment can effectively identify a reinforcer. The present study evaluated a one-trial multiple stimulus (OTMS) preference assessment in comparison to weekly paired-stimulus and multiple stimulus without replacement methods to determine whether presenting several stimuli one time to a participant resulted in the identification of a potent and clinically useful reinforcer.