Parent-Mediated Intervention for One-Year-Olds Screened as At-Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Randomized...

Area of Science:

• Developmental Psychology
• Pediatric Medicine
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Early identification of infants at-risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is crucial for timely intervention.
• Parent-mediated interventions aim to enhance infant outcomes by improving parent-child interactions.
• The efficacy of early, parent-mediated interventions for at-risk infants requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To test the efficacy of Adapted Responsive Teaching (ART), a parent-mediated early intervention, for one-year-olds identified as at-risk for ASD.
• To examine the impact of ART on child outcomes and parent responsiveness.
• To investigate the mediating role of parent responsiveness in the relationship between ART and child outcomes.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial was conducted with 87 one-year-olds identified as at-risk for ASD.
• Participants were assigned to either the Adapted Responsive Teaching (ART) intervention group or a control group.
• Parent responsiveness and child outcomes were assessed to evaluate intervention effects.

Main Results:

• The ART intervention showed minimal direct effects on child outcomes.
• Parents in the ART group demonstrated significantly greater increases in responsiveness compared to the control group.
• Changes in parent responsiveness mediated the effects of the intervention on multiple child outcomes.

Conclusions:

• Parent-mediated interventions like ART can enhance parent responsiveness in infants at-risk for ASD.
• Increased parent responsiveness may be a key mechanism through which early interventions improve child outcomes.
• Further research is needed to optimize early intervention strategies for at-risk infants to improve long-term developmental trajectories.