Project Description:
NEED: Although outcomes vary widely across children, ABA approaches (such as discrete trial training-DTT) are often recommended and are commonly implemented in the community. Other early intervention approaches emphasize changes in outcomes such as social communication instead of IQ and academic skills. For example, the JASPER (Joint Attention, Symbolic Play, Engagement, Regulation) intervention tested by the investigators of this proposal emphasizes developmental targets of social communication and has obtained significant gains in these targets. Although both approaches have shown efficacy in randomized trials for improving cognitive and language outcomes, a single intervention approach may not be effective for all children. Thus,(i)it is important to understand which to start with, and (ii) to understand if for some children, a combination of both approaches may be necessary to make ultimate progress on their cognitive and language goals.
GOALS:1. Estimate which is the best among four pre-specified adaptive interventions for preschoolers with ASD who have minimal language. (Discrete Trial Teaching, JASPER, a combined intervention with DTT first, a combined intervention with DTT first), 2. Develop an individually-tailored adaptive intervention by evaluating the moderating effect of baseline joint attention on treatment response in JASPER versus DTT.
UNUSUAL FEATURES: Most research studies do not include children with minimal verbal skills, so this project is more representative of the early intervention population. In addition, this project answers important questions about both 1) what types of interventions are most effective; and 2) how many hours of these interventions are need to improve communication skills.
EXPECTED BENEFITS: This study will help advance our understanding of what communication interventions work best for children with varying profiles. The results may help inform clinicians to best decide which interventions will be the best fit for children they work with.
Keyword(s):
Adolescent Health, Mental/Behavioral Health – Autism, Developmental Disabilities, Early Childhood – General, Health Equity, Mental/Behavioral Health – General , social communication; language
Core Function(s):
Performing Research or Evaluation
Area of Emphasis
Education & Early Intervention
Target Audience:
Professionals and Para-Professionals, Family Members/Caregivers, Children/Adolescents with Disabilities/SHCN
Unserved or Under-served Populations:
Racial or Ethnic Minorities, Disadvantaged Circumstances
Primary Target Audience Geographic Descriptor:
Regional
COVID-19 Related Data:
N/A
