Parent-Coaching Telehealth Intervention for Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Pilot Program

Abstract

A pilot program investigated the effect of a parent-coaching intervention using naturalistic instruction with 41 parents of children (ages 2–18) with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) on social communication skills. Using a one-group pretest-posttest design, parents reported on ASD symptoms prior to and directly following a 12-week telehealth intervention, where parents implemented behavior strategies with the support of a coach. Results suggested a significant change in skill domains directly corresponding to social communication targets (Cohen’s d = .49), as well as skills not targeted (e.g., behavioral rigidity). Discussion of findings as indicative of true changes in social communication versus parent perception of improvements in child’s skills, future research targets, and study limitations provided.

Keywords:

• Autism spectrum disorder
• adolescents
• behavior
• multimodal communication
• children
• parent coaching
• parent-mediated
• parent training
• social
• telehealth
• telepractice

Acknowledgments

The opinions and conclusions expressed in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the opinions or policy of the THECB.

This manuscript has not been published elsewhere and that it has not been submitted simultaneously for publication elsewhere.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported in whole or part by grants from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) Autism Grant Program (Coach to Communicate (C2C): Partnering to Improve Communication for Individuals with Autism. Awards #17108, 20465).