Purpose: The transition to adulthood is one of the most challenging and complex processes for autistic youth and their families. Few evidence-based transition support programs exist, and those that have garnered support require long-term commitments and resources that may prohibit participation by families with financial and time limitations. The current study investigated the feasibility and initial promise of a brief, caregiver-focused educational transition program for families of autistic youth delivered in the community over a single day.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFor youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their families, adolescence presents unique challenges that require parents work closely with school teams. Both parent involvement in education and family school partnerships are associated with positive student outcomes. However, research characterizing parents' role in working with school-based teams across the middle and high school years for youth with ASD is limited.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFParent-focused intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has garnered considerable evidence of effectiveness for treating core symptoms of the disorder. However, these programs often teach parents discrete skills that may or may not align with school-based interventions. Family-school partnerships (FSPs) are essential for children with ASD given the complex presentation of symptoms characteristic of this disorder.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe present study compared parent ratings to self-report ratings of depression, anxiety, hyperactivity, attention problems, and atypical behaviors in youth with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (HFASD) and typically developing (TD) controls. Measures included parent and self-report forms from the Behavioral Assessment System for Children-Second Edition (BASC-2), and self-report forms from the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) and the Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children (MASC). Results across all five BASC-2 scales indicated parent ratings for the HFASD condition were significantly higher than HFASD self-ratings, and were significantly higher than parent and self-ratings from the TD condition.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA wealth of research demonstrates the importance of early parent-child interactions on children's social functioning. However, less is known about the interrelations between child and parent characteristics and parent-child interactions in early childhood. Moreover, few studies have broadly examined the longitudinal relations between these constructs and social competence.
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