Errorless Compliance Training (ECT) in Cooperative Skills in a Preschool Child with Autism

This single-case study examined the effects and maintenance of cooperative skill training using Errorless Compliance Training (ECT) in a four-year-old boy diagnosed with autism (F84.0) attending a Norwegian kindergarten. A pre–post design with an 11-week follow-up period was implemented. The dependent variable was the percentage of adult instructions followed within 10 seconds without avoidance or resistance. Results indicated a clear increase in cooperative behavior across all levels of task difficulty, with the greatest improvement for low-probability instructions (from 25% at baseline to 75% at follow-up). The findings align with previous research supporting ECT as an effective and socially valid method for increasing cooperation in children with autism. Skills were maintained and partially generalized to natural settings 11 weeks after training. Implications for Early Intensive Behavioral Intervention (EIBI) and early childhood education are discussed.