Review of Auditory Stimulation as Treatment for Vocal Stereotypy: A Discussion of Best Practices and Clinical Recommendations

The use of auditory stimulation to decrease vocal stereotypy in individuals with autism spectrum disorder has been the focus of several studies in recent years. Some of these studies investigated the use of auditory stimulation in the form of music, some evaluated the use of other interventions in tandem with auditory stimulation, and others examined emergent behavior that increases as vocal stereotypy decreases. The purpose of this review and discussion paper is to synthesize information from several of these studies in order to suggest best practices for using auditory stimulation to decrease vocal stereotypy based on these empirical evaluations and provide clinical recommendations for working with children with autism spectrum disorder who engage in vocal stereotypy.