Parent training interventions for toddlers with autism spectrum disorder

Area of Science:

• Developmental Psychology
• Clinical Psychology
• Pediatrics

Background:

• Early identification of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) enables interventions for children under three.
• Most early interventions are intensive and individual, but parent training offers an alternative.
• Parent training focuses on enhancing parent-child interaction and communication for sociocommunicative skill development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review parent training interventions for toddlers (0-36 months) with ASD.
• To examine the effects of these interventions on children's development.
• To assess impacts on parental well-being and parent-child interactions.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature search for studies involving parent training in ASD-specific techniques.
• Inclusion criteria: parents trained to implement techniques with toddlers (0-36 months) diagnosed with or suspected of ASD.
• Fifteen studies involving 484 children were included.

Main Results:

• Parents demonstrated ability to implement learned strategies and reported high satisfaction with training programs.
• Only two studies met criteria for conclusive evidence.
• Findings regarding children's communication, socioemotional skills, parent-child interactions, and parental well-being were inconclusive.

Conclusions:

• Parent training is a feasible approach for toddlers with ASD, with high parent satisfaction.
• Further research with rigorous methodologies is needed to establish conclusive evidence on intervention effectiveness.
• The review highlights the need for more research on the efficacy of parent-focused interventions for early ASD support.