EMT en Español Para Autismo: A Collaborative Communication Intervention Approach and Single Case Design Pilot Study

The primary purpose of the current pilot study was to test the effects of an adapted and collaborative intervention model with a systematic teaching approach on Latina Spanish-speaking caregivers' use of EMT en Español Para Autismo strategies with their young children on the autism spectrum. A multiple baseline across behaviors single case design was replicated across two dyads. A series of family interviews and a direct therapist-child intervention phase supported individualization of the intervention. Families were provided speech generating devices as part of their children's intervention protocol. Caregivers were taught to use EMT en Español Para Autismo strategies with aided language input. Strategies included contingent target-level and proximal target-level language modeling, linguistic expansions, and communication elicitations. Secondary variables measured included generalization of strategy use to unsupported interactions and at a 2-month follow-up, child communication outcomes, and social validity. There was a strong functional relation for one dyad between the adapted and collaborative intervention and caregiver use of EMT strategies. The functional relation was weakened by behavioral covariation for the other dyad. Children increased the quantity and diversity of their communication during the study. Caregivers generalized their use of most EMT strategies and reported most aspects of the approach to be socially valid. The current study provides an initial demonstration of an effective model for adaptation and individualization of naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions for Latino Spanish-speaking families with children on the autism spectrum.