The concept of modeling as a technique for behavior modification was first introduced in the 1960's by Albert Bandura. His later works demonstrated simply watching another individual receive reinforcement for a particular behavior would later increase the rates of a given behavior in the viewer as well as the model. Much work has been done on the concept of modeling since the pioneering work of Bandura.
             Research on modeling has not been limited to behavior modification. Advances in modeling have allowed researchers to extend the work into a variety of skills including motor behaviors such as swimming, social behaviors such as conversation, and even to emotional problems such as anxiety.
             Technology allows a wide variety of skills to be taught by video. Teaching by video has further evolved to include modeling by others as well as 'self' modeling. While both techniques have been used, debated, and evaluated, little research has been done to determine the efficacy of one method in comparison to the other.
             Recently an interest in the use of video modeling with autistic individuals has emerged. These individuals typically exhibit severe attentional, social, affective, language, and motivational problems. This makes autistic individuals a challenging group to instruct.
             Limited research indicates autistic children learn a variety of positive behaviors, including conversational speech, more quickly and with better generalization with video modeling than from live modeling. Only one recent study using video 'self' modeling has been used with autistic children. The results warrant further investigation.
             A study was designed to test the efficacy of video modeling to teach conversational skills to autistic children. Both 'self' modeling and 'other' modeling video techniques were used to test the efficacy of the two types of modeling.
             The test included five male children with autism. They had be...