Communication · Executive Insight Brief · 423
Measure initiation beyond the trained routine
PECS structures a staged social exchange so initiation, persistence, discrimination, and broader communicative functions can be observed without treating pictures as proof of speech or generalized competence.
Premise
PECS shifts attention from picture use to functional initiation. Developed by Andrew Bondy and Lori Frost in 1985 at the Delaware Autism Program, the protocol teaches that communication can change another person’s behavior. A picture board, visual schedule, or symbol app may be useful, but it is not automatically PECS.
What the model is: Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) in Knowledge →
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- Risks and limits
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- FamilyTool
- CategoryIntervention Methods & Practices
- DomainMeaning & Clarity
What these mean
Editorial orientation · Family
Tool
In this series, Tool names the editorial family primarily used to act on, examine, measure or organize communication. It includes instruments, methods, practices, protocols, codes and institutional arrangements. Membership does not certify effectiveness, portability or safe use in every setting.
Editorial orientation · Category
Intervention Methods & Practices
Organizes actions intended to facilitate, plan, train, negotiate, coordinate or change a situation. It connects a practical purpose with a way of working, whose conditions and consequences must be examined.