Internet-Based Parent-Implemented Intervention for Young Children With Autism

TLDR

Both naturalistic communication and parent-implemented interventions are evidence-based practices for young children with disabilities, but demonstrations of effective methods for teaching parents to implement naturalistic interventions successfully with their children are still warranted. The study examined the effects of an Internet-based training and coaching program on parent implementation of naturalistic teaching strategies and on child communication skills. The intervention used a telepractice service-delivery model (i‑PiCS) to train and coach parents in naturalistic teaching strategies. Parents learned to implement the targeted strategies with fidelity only when provided with Internet-based training and coaching, and this implementation corresponded with positive changes in their children’s communication skills. The study discusses its limitations and implications.

Abstract

Both naturalistic communication and parent-implemented interventions are evidence-based practices for young children with disabilities, but demonstrations of effective methods for teaching parents to implement naturalistic interventions successfully with their children are still warranted. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a training and coaching program on parent implementation of naturalistic teaching strategies and on concomitant child communication skills using a telepractice service-delivery model (i.e., Internet-Based Parent-Implemented Communication Strategies [i-PiCS]). We found that parents learned to implement the targeted naturalistic teaching strategies with fidelity when, and only when, they were provided with training and coaching over the Internet. The parents’ implementation of these strategies also corresponded with positive changes in their children’s communication skills. The limitations and implications of this investigation are discussed.