Does Treatment Fidelity of the Early Start Denver Model Impact Skill Acquisition in Young Children with Autism?

There is increasing evidence supporting the effectiveness of the Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) for children on the autism spectrum. However, substantial variability in response to the ESDM has been reported across participants. We examined the plausible yet untested hypothesis that variations in the fidelity level of therapists delivering the intervention contribute to variability in children's response to the ESDM.

Effect of Brief Training to Identify Autism Spectrum Disorder During Toddler Well-Child Care Visits.

Objective: To examine the effect of a brief Enhanced training using the information-motivation-behavior (IMB) change model on improving providers' surveillance rates and accuracy of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) detection.

Method: Toddlers (n = 5,672) were screened for ASD during their pediatric well-child visits. Pediatric providers (n = 120) were randomized to receive Enhanced (incorporating components of the IMB model) or Control training.

Safety and Feasibility of an Immersive Virtual Reality Intervention Program for Teaching Police Interaction Skills to Adolescents and Adults with Autism.

Low-cost, wireless immersive virtual reality (VR) holds significant promise as a flexible and scalable intervention tool to help individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) learn and develop critical practical life skills, including interacting safely and effectively with police officers. Previous research suggests that VR is a motivating intervention platform, but many individuals with ASD also exhibit anxiety and sensory sensitivities which might make it difficult to tolerate VR experiences. Here, we describe the results of a relatively large-scale, National Institutes of Health-funded systematic examination of the safety, feasibility, and usability of an immersive VR training program in adolescents and adults with ASD, aged 12 and older.