Adding modeled speech-generating device use to a naturalistic language intervention facilitates generalized communicative spoken utterances immediately after treatment and generalized gains on declarative use 12 weeks after treatment ends in children with ASD who began treatment in the “word combination” stage

Abstract

This review provides a summary and appraisal commentary on the treatment review by Kasari, C., Kaiser, A., Goods, K., Nietfeld, J., Mathy, P., Landa, R., Murphy, S., & Almirall, D. (2014). Communication interventions for minimally-verbal children with autism: A sequential multiple assignment randomization trial. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 53, 635–646.

Funding: This study was funded by Autism Speaks. Authors reported receiving support from the Health Resources and Services Administration, the National Institutes of Health, Autism Speaks, the Institute of Education Sciences, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative, and Ride On for Autism. Drs. Kasari and Kaiser are authors of the blended JASPER-EMT model.

Declaration of interests: The commentary authors are either faculty or doctoral students in the same department as one of the authors of the Kasari paper.