Randomized Controlled Caregiver Mediated Joint Engagement Intervention for Toddlers with Autism

TLDR

The study investigated whether a joint attention intervention would increase joint engagement between caregivers and toddlers with autism. The intervention comprised 24 caregiver‑mediated sessions with a 1‑year follow‑up. Compared with a waitlist control, the immediate‑treatment group achieved significant, medium‑to‑large improvements in joint engagement, responsiveness to joint attention, and diversity of functional play acts, effects that persisted at 1‑year follow‑up and represent early randomized evidence that brief parent‑mediated interventions can affect core impairments in toddlers with autism. Clinical Trials #: NCT00065910.

Abstract

This study aimed to determine if a joint attention intervention would result in greater joint engagement between caregivers and toddlers with autism. The intervention consisted of 24 caregiver-mediated sessions with follow-up 1 year later. Compared to caregivers and toddlers randomized to the waitlist control group the immediate treatment (IT) group made significant improvements in targeted areas of joint engagement. The IT group demonstrated significant improvements with medium to large effect sizes in their responsiveness to joint attention and their diversity of functional play acts after the intervention with maintenance of these skills 1 year post-intervention. These are among the first randomized controlled data to suggest that short-term parent-mediated interventions can have important effects on core impairments in toddlers with autism. Clinical Trials #: NCT00065910.