Single subject research in occupational therapy: a case illustration

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Psychology
• Neurodevelopmental Disorders
• Occupational Therapy

Background:

• Behavioral disorders in children often present challenges in attention and task engagement.
• Sensory processing differences are increasingly recognized as a factor in behavioral disorders.
• Occupational therapy interventions focus on sensory integration to improve functional outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of tactile, vestibular, and proprioceptive sensory stimulation on attention in male children with behavioral disorders.
• To assess changes in attention to a mathematical computation task following sensory stimulation treatment.

Main Methods:

• Three male children diagnosed with behavioral disorders participated in the study.
• Intervention involved 20-minute sessions of tactile, vestibular, and proprioceptive sensory stimulation, three times weekly for 4-6 weeks.
• Attention was measured by the total time spent on a mathematical task during a 10-minute period, assessed before and after treatment sessions.

Main Results:

• One child showed negligible improvement in attention.
• Another child demonstrated improved performance and reduced response variability.
• The third child initially improved but later showed performance deterioration, though not to baseline levels.

Conclusions:

• Observed improvements in attention were coincident with sensory stimulation but could not be definitively attributed due to lack of baseline stability.
• The study suggests potential, albeit inconsistent, benefits of sensory stimulation for attention in this population.
• Further controlled research with stable baseline measures is recommended to establish causality.