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Several studies suggest that a valuable tool to examine linguistic skills in communication disorders is offered by procedures of narrative discourse assessment. Following this line of research, we present an exploratory study aimed to investigate storytelling abilities of autistic children to better define the characteristics of their story production. Participants included 41 autistic children and 41 children with typical development aged between 7.02 and 11.03 years matched on age, gender, level of formal education, intelligence quotient, working memory, attention skills, theory of mind, and phonological short-term memory. Narrative production was assessed by analysing the language samples obtained through the "Nest Story" description task. A multilevel analysis including micro- and macro-linguistic variables was adopted for narrative assessment. Group differences emerged on both micro- and macro-linguistic dimensions: autistic children produced narratives with more phonological errors and semantic paraphasias (microlinguistic variables) as well as more errors of global coherence and a fewer number of visible events and inferred events (macrolinguistic variables) than the control group.This study shows that even autistic children with adequate cognitive skills display several limitations in their narrative competence and that such weaknesses affect both micro- and macrolinguistic aspects of story production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 lockdown affected children, especially those with autism spectrum disorder, due to the disruption in rehabilitation and educational activities. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 315 preschool-aged children, 35 of which had autism, to investigate this impact. A questionnaire was administered to explore socio-demographic status, familiar/home environment, and COVID-19 exposure. The clinical features of autistic subjects were also examined. Seven variables were considered to describe the effect of pandemic: Remote learning, Behavior changes, Home activities, Sleep habits, Night awakenings, Physical activity, Information about the virus. The lockdown had a significant impact on Remote learning, Behavior changes, and Information about the virus in participants with autism. Moreover, we found a worsening in repetitive movements, echolalia, restricted interests, and aggressive behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Present study aimed to evaluate the relationship between self-compassion and psychological hardiness, and psychological well-being among mothers of children with autism. The research design was correlational, and its statistical population sample consisted of 101 mothers of children with an autism spectrum disorder. The results of a correlational analysis showed a significant positive relationship between self-compassion and psychological hardiness, and psychological well-being. Multiple regression analysis showed that among the variables of self-compassion and psychological hardiness, the variable of self-compassion had the largest share in predicting the psychological well-being of mothers. Concerning self-compassion, conscious awareness of self-kindness along with psychological hardship could predict the psychological well-being in these groups of mothers, such as raising a child with ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Racial/ethnic minoritized youth are underrepresented in autism research. Documented inequities in accessibility to and utilization of autism-specific services highlight the importance of better understanding for whom and under what conditions autism evidence-based practices (EBPs) work. This report examines the race, ethnicity, sex, and gender of school-based autism research participants (e.g. educators, students), given schools are the most common setting in which autistic youth receive services in the United States (US). Data across 14 years of research, for eight school-based studies in the US, showed that while most teachers identified as non-Hispanic White, over half of the youth sampled identified as being of a racial/ethnic minoritized background. Findings provide insights into who is being served in school-based autism research and how school partnerships may increase diversity among autism research participants and offer a means of reducing existing barriers. Researchers should continue to utilize schools to reach diverse populations and consider how demographic characteristics of school staff affect EBP effectiveness. Researchers should continue to better understand the impact of the EBP, provider, and setting on outcomes. Schools are the main provider of behavioral health services in the United States (US). Conducting research in schools may help increase access for autistic youth, but there is limited research about who participates in school-based autism research. The researchers examined data spanning 14 years of participation in school-based autism research. All data were collected in the US. Researchers found that in this sample, more than half of the youth identified as racial/ethnic minoritized (REM) youth. However, demographics of sampled youth were significantly different than expected, based on publicly available school-based population demographics. More youth identified as White non-Hispanic than would be expected in those schools. Majority of the sampled educators also identified as White non-Hispanic. High percentages of autistic REM youth suggest school-based autism research may be an effective way of providing services to more diverse populations. However, sampled schools were also not representative of a US national sample, with sampled schools having fewer White non-Hispanic youth than would be expected from US national statistics. Complexity around representation of schools sampled and demographics of service environments suggests a need for more research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Handwashing is a vital skill for maintaining health and hygiene. For individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), such as autism spectrum disorder, evidence-based strategies, such as prompting and task analysis, may be effective in teaching these skills. Due to the shortage of experts who teach individuals with IDD skills such as handwashing, staff working with children need a means of ensuring these instructional strategies are implemented with fidelity. This study examined the effects of a tablet-based application that used artificial intelligence (GAINS®) on four behavior technicians' implementation of least-to-most prompting, total task chaining, and time delay during an acquisition of handwashing program with young children with autism. All four technicians increased fidelity immediately upon using GAINS and all four technicians reached mastery criteria within the shortest number of sessions possible. One child participant met mastery criteria, two showed some gains, and one demonstrated a high degree of variability across sessions. Limitations of the least-to-most prompting procedure, user design, considerations and directions for future research and practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Caregiver-mediated interventions for young autistic children are increasingly considered standard of care. These interventions share two sets of components: strategies to improve children's communication, behavior, and development; and procedures to coach caregivers to implement those strategies. To date, no review has examined how caregiver coaching is described in caregiver-mediated intervention manuals. We assessed how caregiver coaching is described in caregiver-mediated intervention manuals for young autistic children. We conducted a scoping review to identify publicly available manuals that are designed to support providers in their practice; target core or co-occurring symptoms that affect young autistic children; and were tested as caregiver-mediated interventions in randomized controlled trials. We identified 11 publicly available manuals that met inclusion criteria. Manuals were coded using a summative content analysis to identify the presence and frequency of descriptions of caregiver coaching. The content analysis highlighted a wide range in the descriptions of caregiver coaching. Many intervention manuals did not include specific descriptions of caregiver coaching. Intervention developers should include explicit information about how to coach caregivers. Implementation strategies that specifically target caregiver coaching can serve as critical supports to increase the use of coaching in early intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Challenging behaviour (CB) is a common issue among children with autism spectrum disorder or intellectual and developmental disability. Mental health applications are low-threshold cost-effective tools to address the lack of resources for caregivers. This pre-post study evaluated the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of the smartphone app ProVIA-Kids using algorithm-based behaviour analysis to identify causes of CB and provide individualized practical guidance to manage and prevent CB. Methods: A total of 18 caregivers (M = 38.9 ± 5.0) of children with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (44%), intellectual and developmental disabilities (33%) or both (22%) aged 4-11 years (M = 7.6 ± 1.8) were included. Assessments were performed before and after an 8-week intervention period. The primary outcome was the change in parental stress. Caregiver stress experience due to CB was also rated daily via ecological momentary assessments within the app. Secondary outcomes included the intensity of the child's CB, dysfunctional parenting, feelings of parental competency as well as caregivers' mood (rated daily in the app) and feedback on the app collected via the Mobile Application Rating Scale. Results: We observed increases in parental stress in terms of conscious feelings of incompetence. However, we also saw improvements in parental stress experience due to CB and overreactive parenting, and descriptive improvements in CB intensity and caregiver mood. Discussion: ProVIA-Kids pioneers behaviour analysis in a digital and automated format, with participants reporting high acceptance. Pilot results highlight the potential of the ProVIA-Kids app to positively influence child behaviour and caregiver mental health over a longer intervention period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aims: Autistic children can experience challenges in making and maintaining friendships, and middle childhood (ages 6–12) may be particularly challenging as social networks become more complex. However, a large proportion of research into these experiences is based on adult reports or focuses on the experiences of adolescents, meaning that the voices of younger children are absent. Due to the exclusion of younger children from research, we have a limited understanding of their first-hand experiences of their friendships and the support they receive, which has implications for friendship support and wellbeing. This study aimed to amplify the voices of younger autistic children to explore their first-hand experiences of friendships and highlight areas of social support which may be most beneficial to primary-aged autistic children. Methods: This study used novel creative methods to support interviews with 19 autistic primary school-aged children to explore their experiences of friendship. Parent-led interviews and scrapbooks supported the children in discussing the challenges and strengths of their friendships. Results: Children discussed the challenges and strengths of their friendships including the impact of social norms on the need to have friends and their support needs in this area of life. Children also discussed gaps in their current friendships and how they would like to see these filled. It was clear that not all children required or wanted neurotypical-style friendships, with many valuing companionship and gameplay over intimacy. Analysis highlighted the heterogeneity of autistic children's friendships, especially in relation to gender and age, calling for more tailored and individualized support. Conclusion and implications: Results from the current study show that autistic children can and do have successful friendships but that these friendships may differ from those of their non-autistic peers. The study further adds to the existing literature by showing that younger autistic children can be included in research by using differentiated, accessible and creative methods, and that they are able to voice their opinions on matters surrounding support. It also calls for a tailored approach to supporting autistic children in school and speaking with children to give them autonomy over the support they want to receive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is the first investigation of psychological, medical, and neurodevelopmental problems in children with versus without cognitive disengagement syndrome (CDS) (formerly sluggish cognitive tempo) in autism, ADHD-Combined, ADHD-Inattentive, and general population samples. Mothers rated 987 children with autism, 700 with ADHD-Combined, and 303 with ADHD-Inattentive (5–17 years) and 665 elementary school children (6–12 years) on the Pediatric Behavior Scale. Comorbid problems that were significantly more prevalent in children with versus without CDS in all or most of the four diagnostic groups in order of significance were cognitive problems (comprehension problems, illogical thinking, forgetful, and thinks and works slowly), gross motor incoordination, depression, somatic complaints (stomachaches, headaches, other body aches, and feels sick), excessive sleep, anxiety, inattention, insomnia, academic impairment, bully victimization, autism, dysgraphia, and overweight. Comorbidities not differing between children with and without CDS in all or most diagnostic groups were hyperactivity, impulsivity, oppositional behavior, irritability/temper outbursts, aggression, bullying, suicide ideation and attempts, incontinence, underweight, seizures, speech problems, and low IQ. Given CDS's association with multiple problems and functional impairment, its general population prevalence similar to that of other childhood disorders, and its high frequency in clinical children, it is important to evaluate CDS symptoms and comorbidity in referred children and intervene when symptoms are present. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We sought to conduct a pilot investigation of the reliability and administration fidelity of a new play-based measure of social communication for infants and toddlers with an autism diagnosis. Method: Our team adapted an existing measure, the Early Communication Indicator (ECI), for use with young autistic children in clinical and research contexts. In this brief report, we detail our adaptation process including administration and scoring of the final adapted measure based on data from a two-phase pilot study with young autistic children (N = 17). Results: This adapted measure, the Early Communication Indicator-Autism (ECI-A), captured a range of scores for the ECI, Initiation of Joint Attention, and Directed Communication in pilot testing. Interrater reliability was moderate to strong across the scored behaviors. Finally, parents were able to administer the ECI-A with high fidelity with support from the research staff. Conclusions: This two-phase pilot study demonstrated promise for the ECI-A as a brief measure of social communication that can be administered by parents and reliably scored by trained staff with limited background in autism assessments. Validation of the ECI-A is presently underway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As a group, autistic children with high support needs (with adaptive functioning in the range of an intellectual disability) are at risk of significant literacy difficulties. We investigated the parent‐reported home literacy environment of this group of children. Method: Sixty‐two parents of autistic children (4.5 to 18.25 years) attending an autism‐specific school completed a home literacy survey reporting on their child's: (1) alphabet knowledge, (2) interest in reading, (3) activities/interactions around books, (4) reading ability, and (5) writing ability. Results: We found significant positive correlations between parent‐reported child interest in reading and literacy‐related interactions and skills, but not with child age. Children using spoken words to communicate obtained significantly greater scores on four home‐literacy subscales, but not on reading interest. Conclusions: A better understanding of the home literacy activities of autistic children with high‐support needs is needed to inform educational practices aimed at promoting literacy development in this vulnerable population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Previous research has shown a significant link between gut microbiota in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, much remains unknown because of the heterogeneity of disorders and the potential confounders such as dietary patterns and control group variations. Methods: Children aged 6–12 years who had been clinically diagnosed with ASD and/or ADHD, their unaffected neurotypical siblings, and non‐related neurotypical volunteers were recruited cross‐sectionally. The ASD diagnosis was confirmed using the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule‐2 (ADOS‐2) in all patients, including those with ADHD. Standardized DNA extraction and sequencing methods were used to compare gut microbial alpha‐diversity among the groups. Dietary diversity was calculated from a standardized dietary questionnaire form. We compared the difference in gut microbiome between patients with ASD and/or ADHD with neurotypical siblings and non‐related neurotypical controls. Results: Ninety‐eight subjects were included in the study (18 with ASD, 19 with ADHD, 20 with both ASD and ADHD, 13 neurotypical siblings, and 28 non‐related neurotypical controls). The alpha‐diversity indices, such as Chao 1 and Shannon index, showed a significant difference between the groups in a Linear mixed‐effect model (F(4, 93) = 4.539, p =.02), (F(4, 93) = 3.185, p =.017), respectively. In a post‐hoc pairwise comparison, patients with ASD had lower alpha‐diversity compared with non‐related controls after Bonferroni correction. Dietary diversity shown in Shannon index did not differ among the groups (F(4, 84) = 1.494, p =.211). Conclusions: Our study indicates disorder‐specific microbiome differences in patients with ASD. In future research on gut microbiota in neurodevelopmental disorders, it is necessary to consider the impact of ASD and ADHD co‐occurrence, and strictly control for background information such as diet, to elucidate the gut–microbiota interaction in ASD and ADHD for exploring the potential of therapeutic interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Autism and autistic traits onset in childhood but persist into adulthood. Little is known about how genetic and environmental factors influence autism and autistic traits into adulthood. We aimed to determine age effects on the heritability of clinically diagnosed autism and the etiological stability of autistic traits from childhood to adulthood using twin methods. Methods: From 23,849 twin pairs in the Swedish Twin Register born between 1959 and 2010, we identified 485 individuals (1.01%, 31.5% female) with a clinical autism diagnosis. We estimated and compared the relative contribution of genetic, shared, and nonshared environmental influences to autism in childhood and adulthood. We further used multivariate twin analysis with four measurement points among 1,348 twin pairs in the longitudinal Twin Study of Child and Adolescent Development to assess the phenotypic and etiological stability of autistic traits – measured with three scales from the Child Behavior Checklist – from childhood to adulthood. Results: Autism heritability was comparable from childhood, (96% [95% CI, 76–99%]) to adulthood (87% [67–96%]). Autistic traits were moderately stable (phenotypic correlation = 0.35–0.61) from childhood to adulthood, and their heritability varied between 52 and 71%. We observed stable as well as newly emerging genetic influences on autistic traits from ages 8–9 to 19–20, and unique nonshared environmental influences at each age. Conclusions: Genetic factors are important for autism and autistic traits in adulthood and separate genetic studies in adults are warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little is known about care providers' expectations for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and intellectual disabilities (ID) in Ghana. This study used group concept mapping (n = 9) and a quantitative survey (n = 128) to explore and compare service providers' and parents' expectations for children with ASD or ID. Data were analyzed using hierarchical clustering procedures and Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA). Concept mapping results revealed several expectation clusters, including independence, love and acceptance, equal social rights and opportunities, and professional and caregiver training. MANOVA results revealed significant differences between parents, teachers, and healthcare providers in their perceptions of the importance and likelihood of a child achieving these expectations. Results are discussed in reference to the cultural context, and implications are outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study profiled various levels of engagement and related communication behaviours among 50 Asian Indian Tamil autistic children (AUT) and their mothers. The interaction was compared with two groups of mother-child dyads of non-autistic (NA) children, 50 in each group, matched for chronological age (CA), and for language level (LL). Results indicated that despite mother's efforts to engage with their children, autistic children were often 'engaged with objects' or remained 'unengaged' due to children's preference for solitary play, while NA children were often engaged in 'co-ordinated' and 'people engagement'. Across the three groups, mothers predominantly took the lead and dominated the interaction, irrespective of children's language levels. These initiations by the mothers were often to provide instructions and to ask 'What' questions. Autistic children initiated communication predominantly to ask for an object and responded often in the form of negations and protests with limited verbal output or non-verbally. Most of the communication behaviours of both children and mothers in AUT group was quantitatively and qualitatively different when compared to those in both the NA groups, indicating unique nature of interactions despite matching for CA or LL. The observations from the study highlights the need for considering adult's contingent behaviours also, while assessing communication skills of autistic children in order to provide effective intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Though there is evidence autism identification has been inequitable for populations who are culturally and linguistically minoritized, there is limited research that explains the issue of disproportionality and factors contributing to its occurrence, especially within an educational setting. To explore contributors to racial/ethnic disparities in autism special education eligibility, the current investigation evaluated child and evaluation characteristics as they relate to the absence of autism eligibility. Data were obtained from the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network Study and included children with behavioral characteristics consistent with autism and educational evaluation records. Despite documented characteristics consistent with autism, only 72% of the sample received educational services under autism eligibility. To characterize children without autism eligibility, hierarchical logistic regression was used to evaluate factors documented in evaluation records predicting the absence of autism eligibility. Factors influencing autism eligibility included behavioral characteristics documented, evaluation components completed, intellectual ability, and clinical diagnoses present. There was no unique contribution of race/ethnicity in predicting the absence of autism eligibility when accounting for these previous predictors, but many of these predictors differed by racial/ethnic group. Disproportionality in autism may be the manifestation of inequitable evaluation experiences, including experiencing less comprehensive evaluations, and not receiving an autism specific assessment. Though race/ethnicity did not uniquely contribute to the absence of autism eligibility above and beyond those combined factors, it is important to evaluate and reduce inequities experienced within the autism identification process for populations who are culturally and linguistically minoritized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring what practices early childhood special education (ECSE) teachers have been exposed to and use may highlight the need for improved dissemination and implementation supports. In this survey study, 312 U.S. ECSE teachers reported exposure (familiarity, training) and use of evidence-based practices (EBPs) and low-value practices (LVPs) for children with autism. Teachers reported high familiarity, training, and use of many EBPs (e.g., modeling, reinforcement), while other EBPs remain minimally used despite high familiarity (video modeling; 23.4%). Some teachers reported not using EBPs they had been trained in. Overall, teachers reported some familiarity and use of LVPs (m = 20.47, 0%–50.64%) and minimal training (preservice = 1.6%–33.33%). Research should explore exposure and other possible explanations of the limited use of effective practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Functional communication training (FCT) provides an efficient means for reducing a variety of challenging behaviors while increasing social communication. After establishing a functional communication response (FCR), interventionists may need to design a program to thin the schedule of reinforcement to provide more durable effects and maintenance in the natural environment. Hanley et al. provided one means for thinning schedules that involved the systematic introduction of extinction (or denial trials) following a process of delaying reinforcement. This study evaluates a southeastern U.S. classroom application of this thinning process with three elementary age students who engaged in a variety of aggression, self-injury, disruption, and crying. The results indicate positive effects of the FCT program with systematic introduction of denial trials once the participants demonstrated proficiency with the FCR. In addition, data for two participants show prolonged effects post-intervention. Results are discussed in terms of extending Hanley et al. and how these procedures can be used within typical school-based settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most studies of social robot interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder have been laboratory experiments focusing on component skills. There is insufficient evidence documenting the qualitative impact of such programmes on social development and participation of children with autism spectrum disorder. This study aimed to identify the qualitative outcomes of a robot-mediated social skills training programme for children with autism spectrum disorder, examine the impact of such programmes on children's social participation and identify the essential elements of robotic interventions that are conducive to children's social development. A case study approach with a multiple case study design was adopted. Sixteen children with autism spectrum disorder, aged 5–11 years, were included. Participants received 12 weekly sessions of robot-mediated social skills training. The successful outcomes relating to social participation were identified as enhanced verbal expression, social awareness and emotional reciprocity. The impacts of the programme on personal development were identified as enhanced self-esteem, self-confidence and emotional expression. Robot friendship, the role of the robot as a facilitator and the presence of a human instructor capable of leading the programme were identified as essential elements of the positive changes. The encounter with a social robot was regarded as meaningful and important to the children with autism spectrum disorder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Participating in home and community activities can be influenced by environmental factors and parent strategies. Children on the autism spectrum are reported to participate less in home and community activities than their neurotypical peers. Little is known about environmental factors that may influence their participation, and ways parents support their child's participation. Materials and methods: Parents of children on the autism spectrum aged 5–6 years (n = 72) and 10–11 years (n = 94) completed the Participation and Environment Measure for Children and Youth. This study reports on the perceived support, barriers, and resources in the home and the community environment. Parents reported strategies they used to support their child's participation in home and the community. Results: Home environmental factors were identified as more supportive by the parents of younger children. The sensory quality of activities and social demands were factors identified as making community participation harder for both groups. Parents used a range of different strategies in the home and the community to support their child's participation. Conclusions: Identifying environmental barriers and supports to participation can assist in developing interventions to support meaningful participation in activities for children on the autism spectrum. Implications for rehabilitation: Skills required for the activity and preferences of children on the autism spectrum are important considerations when supporting their participation in activities. When exploring a child's level of participation, it may be helpful to ask parents about what their child can do with or without their support. The sensory quality of the environment is a consideration when supporting the participation of children on the autism spectrum in community activities. As sensory processing is an individual experience, the impact of sensory elements of the environment may differ for individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To provide inclusive education to autistic students, it is important that teachers possess knowledge about autism, feel competent in teaching autistic students, and have a positive attitude toward the inclusion of autistic students. In this study, we explored knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitude concerning autism among N = 887 teachers in Germany. The results showed that knowledge about autism was only moderate and teachers held some typical misconceptions about autism. Moreover, teachers did not possess overwhelmingly high self-efficacy beliefs whereas their attitude toward inclusion of autistic students was rather positive. Experience with teaching autistic students was associated with more knowledge and higher self-efficacy. Also, female teachers were more knowledgeable about autism and felt more competent in teaching autistic students than male teachers. However, the type of school where teachers were working made hardly any difference in their knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitude. Overall, the results suggest that teachers in Germany need more autism training to increase their knowledge about autism and their self-efficacy beliefs in teaching autistic students. Nowadays, autistic students are often enrolled in mainstream schools. To successfully include autistic students in general education, teachers need to possess knowledge about autism, feel competent in teaching autistic students, and have a positive attitude toward their inclusion. However, in Germany, little is known about the knowledge, the self-efficacy, and the attitude concerning autism among teachers working at mainstream schools. Therefore, we conducted a study in which we used items to assess knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitude. A total of 887 general education teachers participated in the study. The results showed that the level of knowledge about autism was moderate among teachers. Similarly, teachers did not hold overwhelmingly high self-efficacy beliefs. However, their attitude toward inclusion of autistic students was rather positive. At the same time, teachers who had experience with teaching autistic students possessed more knowledge and higher self-efficacy than teachers who had no experience with teaching autistic students. In addition, female teachers were more knowledgeable about autism and felt more competent in teaching autistic students than male teachers. In contrast, knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitude were rather similar among teachers from different types of schools. The findings suggest that teachers in Germany should possess more knowledge about autism and feel more competent in teaching autistic students. Therefore, it is important to systematically include autism trainings in teacher education programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The dorsal stream vulnerability hypothesis posits that the dorsal stream, responsible for visual motion and visuo-motor processing, may be particularly vulnerable during neurodevelopment. Consistent with this, autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been associated with deficits in global motion integration, though deficits in ventral stream tasks, such as form identification, have also been reported. In the current study, we examined whether a similar pattern of results is found in a cohort of 381 children born with neurodevelopmental risk factors and exhibiting a wide spectrum of caregiver-reported autistic traits. Methods: We examined the associations between global motion perception, global form perception, fine motor function, visual-motor integration, and autistic traits (autism spectrum quotient, AQ) using linear regression, accounting for possible interactions with sex and other factors relevant to neurodevelopment. Results: All assessments of dorsal stream function were significantly associated with AQ such that worse performance predicted higher AQ scores. We also observed a significant sex interaction, with worse global form perception associated with higher AQ in boys (n = 202) but not girls (n = 179). Conclusion: We found widespread associations between dorsal stream functions and autistic traits. These associations were observed in a large group of children with a range of AQ scores, demonstrating a range of visual function across the full spectrum of autistic traits. In addition, ventral function was associated with AQ in boys but not girls. Sex differences in the associations between visual processing and neurodevelopment should be considered in the designs of future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New motor skills can shape how infants communicate with their caregivers. For example, learning to walk allows infants to move faster and farther than they previously could, in turn allowing them to approach their caregivers more frequently to gesture or vocalize. Does the link between walking and communication differ for infants later diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), whose communicative and motor development differs from their neurotypically developing peers? We prospectively followed two groups of infants longitudinally during the transition from crawling to walking: (1) N = 25 infants with no family history of ASD; and (2) N = 91 infants with an older sibling with ASD. Fifteen infants were later diagnosed with ASD, and 26 infants showed a language delay (but did not receive an ASD diagnosis). After learning to walk, infants without ASD or language delay showed considerable changes in their communication: They gestured more frequently, and increasingly coordinated their gestures and vocalizations with locomotion (e.g., by approaching a caregiver and showing a toy). Infants with language delay showed similar but attenuated growth in their communication. However, infants later diagnosed with ASD did not display enhanced communication after they began to walk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate the gap between adaptive functioning and cognitive functioning, especially verbal and nonverbal intelligence quotient (IQ) in Chinese children with ASD. We systematically explored cognitive functioning, ASD severity, early signs of developmental abnormalities, and socioeconomic factors as mediating factors of adaptive functioning. We enrolled 151 children (age: 2.5?6 years) with ASD and categorized them into one group with IQ ≥ 70 and another with IQ < 70. The two groups were calibrated for age, age at diagnosis, and IQ, and the relationship of adaptive skills with vocabulary acquisition index (VAI) and nonverbal index (NVI) were separately analyzed. Results show that the gap between IQ and adaptive functioning was significant in children with ASD having IQ ≥ 70, with both VAI and NVI showing statistically significant differences (all P < 0.001). VAI correlated positively with scores for overall adaptive skills and specific domains, whereas NVI had no significant correlations with adaptive skill scores. Age of first walking unaided had an independent positive correlation (all P < 0.05) with scores of adaptive skills and specific domains. IQ-adaptive functioning gap is significant in children with ASD having IQ ≥ 70, suggesting that defining "high-functioning autism" merely on the basis of IQ is not appropriate. Verbal IQ and early signs of motor development are specific and possible predictors of adaptive functioning in children with ASD, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this single-case experimental design (SCED) study is to investigate how adaptive prompts in virtual reality (VR)-based social skills training affect the social skills performance of autistic children. Adaptive prompts are driven by autistic children's emotional states. To integrate adaptive prompts in VR-based training, we conducted speech data mining and endorsed micro-adaptivity design. We recruited four autistic children (12–13 years) for the SCED study. We carried out alternating treatments design to evaluate the impacts of adaptive and non-adaptive prompting conditions throughout a series of VR-based social skills training sessions. Using mixed-method data collection and analyses, we found that adaptive prompts can foster autistic children's desirable social skills performance in VR-based training. Based on the study findings, we also describe design implications and limitations for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Gesture delay in autistic infants and toddlers has been widely reported. The developmental trajectory of gesture production during early childhood is understudied. Thus, little is known about the possible changes of gesture production over time. The present study aimed to document the development of gesture production in autistic children and examine whether child-based factors (chronological age and initial language skills) predicted gesture development. Method: A total of 33 Chinese-speaking autistic children (Mage = 56.39 months, SD = 8.54 months) played with their parents at four time points over a 9-month period. Their speech was transcribed, and their gestures were coded from parent-child interaction. Multilevel modeling analysis was used to investigate the development of gesture and its associated factors. Results: The total number of gestures produced by autistic children decreased over time. Among different factors, children's initial age significantly and negatively predicted children's gesture production, while initial language positively predicted children's gesture production. Conclusions: Gesture delay persists in preschool age. The decline in gesture production was associated with children's age and initial language ability. These findings shed light on the difficulties surrounding gesture use in autistic children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Communication and interaction in neurotypical environments can be challenging for autistic individuals, potentially disrupting the parent-child relationship. In Relationship Development Intervention (RDI) that facilitates improved interactions between autistic children and their parents, RDI Consultants play key roles in enabling parents to develop skills that support the parent-child relationship. Parents follow the guidance of the Consultants to build their capacities to model reciprocal communications with their autistic children. Given the significant role played by the Consultant, their perspectives should be explored. Two research questions were explored: 1) What are the lived experiences of RDI Consultants in delivering RDI to autistic children and their families? 2) What are RDI Consultants' perspectives regarding the outcomes of engaging in RDI for autistic children and their families? Eleven RDI Consultants participated in semi-structured interviews to explore their experiences in using RDI. Interviews were conducted via Zoom. All interviews were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. Three main themes were produced: 1) RDI helps autistic children reach their potential; 2) Parents learn to embrace parenthood through RDI; and 3) Consultants form a team with parents. Overall, RDI was perceived to be beneficial in improving autistic children's social engagement, such as parent-child interactions, as well as enhancing parenting experiences. The results add to and extend the existing evidence of RDI, which may provide families of autistic children and those professionals who are working with these families more therapeutic choices to consider. Future research implications for parents and health professionals involved in therapies are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic thrust telepractice into the mainstream as a primary service delivery model. While some populations and providers were adversely impacted by this shift, there were some intervention approaches that became even more popular. Parent-mediated intervention (PMI) has been shown to be effective through both in-person and telepractice service delivery models. With PMI, caregivers learn language facilitation strategies and implement them with their child. Project SKILLS (Skills and Knowledge for Language Learning Success) is a PMI program for autistic children funded by a state-level autism grant program. The primary goal of SKILLS is training caregivers in language facilitation techniques to promote communication and language skills. It uses the Project ImPACT (Improving Parents as Communication Teachers) curriculum that is commercially available and supported by previous research. SKILLS also includes variations for neurodiversity-affirming practice and culturally and linguistically diverse families. Project SKILLS has offered both in-person and telepractice delivery since its inception in 2016, making it possible to compare results across the two modalities. Conclusions: Project SKILLS has successfully implemented PMI for autistic children through both in-person and telepractice sessions. Clinically, children have made similar gains in social communication and language regardless of the modality. Caregivers also demonstrated similar progress with intervention fidelity, with some added advantages for families participating via telepractice. Telepractice may become a preferred service delivery model of PMI, especially for families living in geographically inaccessible locations with limited access to qualified providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Caregivers of children with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience more stress than caregivers of typically developing children but there is limited research evaluating caregivers' quality of life (QoL). This study aimed to describe the association of caregiver QoL in children with ASD and/or ADHD. This study included patients with ADHD and/or ASD seen in one pediatric specialty clinic between September 2018-August 2020. Caregivers were classified as those caring for children with ASD-only, ADHD-only, or youth with both conditions (ADHD + ASD). An adapted version of the PedsQL Family Impact Module was used to measure caregiver QoL. The sample included caregivers of 931 children. The majority of these children were male (74.7%), non-Hispanic white (63.3%), and aged 6 to 12 years (57.8%). Across the groups, significant differences were observed in patient age (p < 0.0001), preferred language (p = 0.005), and insurance (p = 0.001). Caregivers of non-Hispanic Black children had 4-times the odds of reporting feeling isolated from others (OR 4.36, 95% CI 1.19-16.00 p = 0.03). Those caring for children with ADHD-only had significantly lower odds of reporting helplessness or hopelessness (OR 0.45, 95% CI 0.26-0.80, p = 0.004), and difficulty talking about their child's health with others (OR 0.30, 95% CI 0.17-0.54, p < 0.0001). Similarly, caregivers of children who had ADHD + ASD reported higher odds of difficulty making decisions together as a family (OR 14.18, 95% CI 1.15-17.91, p=0.04) and difficulty solving family problems together (OR 45.12, 95% CI 2.70-752.87), p = 0.008). Caring for children with ADHD and/or ASD may affect caregiver QoL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a multifactorial, pervasive, neurodevelopmental disorder, of which intestinal symptoms collectively represent one of the most common comorbidities. Methods: In this study, 1,222 children with ASD and 1,206 typically developing (TD) children aged 2-7 years were enrolled from 13 cities in China. Physical measurement and basic information questionnaires were conducted in ASD and TD children. The Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS), Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS), and Autism Behavior Checklist (ABC) were used to evaluate the clinical symptoms of children with ASD. The six-item Gastrointestinal Severity Index (6-GSI) was used to evaluate the prevalence of intestinal symptoms in two groups. Results: The detection rates of constipation, stool odor, and total intestinal symptoms in ASD children were significantly higher than those in TD children (40.098% vs. 25.622%, 17.021% vs. 9.287%, and 53.601% vs. 41.294%, respectively). Autistic children presenting with intestinal comorbidity had significantly higher scores on the ABC, SRS, CARS, and multiple subscales than autistic children without intestinal symptoms, suggesting that intestinal comorbidity may exacerbates the core symptoms of ASD children. Conclusion: Intestinal dysfunction was significantly more common in autistic than in TD children. This dysfunction may aggravate the core symptoms of children with ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aimed to examine whether Mandarin-speaking children on the autism spectrum showed differences in comprehending spatial demonstratives ("this" and "that", and "here" and "there"), as compared to typically developing (TD) children. Another aim of this study was to investigate the roles of theory of mind (ToM) and executive functions (EF) in the comprehension of spatial demonstratives. Twenty-seven autistic children (mean age 6.86) and 27 receptive-vocabulary-matched TD children (mean age 5.82) were recruited. Demonstrative comprehension was assessed based on participants' ability to place objects in certain locations according to experimenters' instructions which involved these demonstratives in three different conditions (same-, opposite-, and spectator-perspective conditions). Four false-belief tasks were administered to measure ToM, and the word-span task and the dimensional change card sort task were used to measure two subcomponents of EF – working memory and mental flexibility – respectively. Children on the autism spectrum were found to score below TD children in the comprehension of spatial demonstratives. In addition, the results showed that ToM and working memory were conducive to the correct interpretation of spatial demonstratives. The two cognitive abilities mutually influenced their respective roles in spatial demonstrative comprehension in the three different conditions. The findings suggest that the comprehension of spatial demonstratives comprehension is an area of need in Mandarin-speaking children on the autism spectrum, and it might be linked to their differences in cognitive abilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Occupational therapists need to comprehensively assess the participation of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in daily activities and evaluate the effectiveness of relevant interventions. Several participation measurement tools have been developed for children with ASD, but these tools require expert involvement, which is a barrier to large‐scale surveys. To address these concerns, a caregiver‐administered questionnaire—the Participation Questionnaire for Preschoolers (PQP)—was developed. However, this tool could be improved due to its narrow age range of 48–72 months and because the item development process does not reflect the perspectives of children and caregivers. Therefore, we expanded the PQP's target age range to 36–83 months and developed new items that reflect the perspectives of professionals and caregivers. Interviews were conducted with eight experts in supporting children with ASD and 11 caregivers of children with ASD. The interviews were transcribed, and a content analysis was performed. The number of questions was reduced from 51 to 36, and the order of items was changed for clarity. Two of the eight subdomains were removed to clarify the conceptual difference between activity and participation. The updated version of the PQP has two unique features: (1) it can be administered without expert involvement, and (2) it includes items specific to the challenges faced by children with ASD. Future development of the scale and validation of its measurement properties are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Eating problems are prevalent among children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The Brief Autism Mealtime Behaviors Inventory (BAMBI) has great potential for helping physicians quickly detect feeding issues in autistic children. This study aimed to evaluate feeding behavioral problems and their correlation to ASD severity among children with ASD using the BAMBI and Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS). This cross-sectional study enrolled 52 Egyptian children with an ASD. An Arabic version of BAMBI was administered to the parents of these children. Data about the participants' sociodemographics as well as BAMBI and CARS were collected. Results: Our main findings revealed that limited food variety features, such as preferring crunchy food or only sweet foods, were significant problems (57.7% and 52%). The means of the BAMBI and the CARS were 48.11 ± 12.2 and 39.9 ± 9.8, respectively. Living in rural areas, having limited income, elementary education of mothers, unemployed fathers, low birth weight, and neonatal care unit admission, were significantly associated with the BAMBI scale. Children with more severe ASD have a limited variety of behavior during eating than the minimal and moderate ASD groups (p = 0.01 and 0.03, respectively). A statistically positive correlation was observed between the BAMBI and CARS (r = 0.4 and p = 0.02). Conclusions: Using the BAMBI scale, Egyptian children with more severe ASD were found to have limited food selectivity. The BAMBI scale was significantly correlated with the CARS, suggesting that the BAMBI may be an effective measure of the severity in autistic children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aims: Nongenerative speech is the rote repetition of words or phrases heard from others or oneself. The most common manifestations of nongenerative speech are immediate and delayed echolalia, which are a well-attested clinical feature and a salient aspect of atypical language use in autism. However, there are no current estimates of the frequency of nongenerative speech, and the individual characteristics associated with nongenerative speech use in individuals across the autistic spectrum are poorly understood. In this study, we aim to measure and characterize spontaneous and nongenerative speech use in minimally verbal and verbally fluent autistic children and adolescents. Methods: Participants were 50 minimally verbal and 50 verbally fluent autistic individuals aged 6 to 21 years. Spontaneous and nongenerative speech samples were derived from SALT transcripts of ADOS-2 assessments. Participants' intelligible speech utterances were categorized as spontaneous or nongenerative. Spontaneous versus nongenerative utterances were compared between language subgroups on frequency of use and linguistic structure. Associations between nongenerative speech use and a series of individual characteristics (ADOS-2 subscale scores, nonverbal IQ, receptive vocabulary, and chronological age) were investigated over the whole sample and for each language subgroup independently. Results: Almost all participants produced some nongenerative speech. Minimally verbal individuals produced significantly more nongenerative than spontaneous utterances, and more nongenerative utterances compared to verbally fluent individuals. Verbally fluent individuals produced limited rates of nongenerative utterances, in comparison to their much higher rates of spontaneous utterances. Across the sample, nongenerative utterance rates were associated with nonverbal IQ and receptive vocabulary, but not separately for the two language subgroups. In verbally fluent individuals, only age was significantly inversely associated with nongenerative speech use such that older individuals produced fewer nongenerative utterances. In minimally verbal individuals, there were no associations between any of the individual characteristics and nongenerative speech use. In terms of linguistic structure, the lexical diversity of nongenerative and spontaneous utterances of both language subgroups was comparable. Morphosyntactic complexity was higher for spontaneous compared to nongenerative utterances in verbally fluent individuals, while no differences emerged between the two utterance types in minimally verbal individuals. Conclusions: Nongenerative speech presents differently in minimally verbal and verbally fluent autistic individuals. Although present in verbally fluent individuals, nongenerative speech appears to be a major feature of spoken language in minimally verbal children and adolescents. Implications: Our results advocate for more research on the expressive language profiles of autistic children and adolescents who remain minimally verbal and for further investigations of nongenerative speech, which is usually excluded from language samples. Given its prevalence in the spoken language of minimally verbal individuals, nongenerative speech could be used as a way to engage in and maintain communication with this subgroup of autistic individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Russia's war on Ukraine has displaced millions. For autistic children this resulted in the loss of services based on applied behavior analysis (ABA). To develop a model of culturally competent, high-efficacy, family-centered, and fidelity driven ABA services for displaced Ukrainian families in Czechia, this study piloted a package teaching caregivers to build skills with their autistic children. Using a multiple probe design, practitioners collaboratively selected targets, lectured, and held coaching sessions. Results demonstrated that the program was socially valid, contributed to parental skill gains, and in a broader context can serve as a foundation for future work serving refugee families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study was to investigate the factors associated with preventable hospitalization due to ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSCs) in children with autism. Methods: Using secondary data from the U.S. Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS), multivariable regression analyses were conducted to determine the potential effect of race and income level on the likelihood of inpatient stays for ACSCs among autistic children. Pediatric ACSCs included three acute conditions (dehydration, gastroenteritis, and urinary infection) and three chronic conditions (asthma, constipation, and diabetes short-term complications). Results: In this analysis, there were 21,733 hospitalizations among children with autism; about 10% were hospitalized due to pediatric ACSCs. Overall, the odds of ACSCs hospitalization were greater among Hispanic and Black autistic children versus White autistic children. Both Hispanic and Black autistic children from the lowest income level had the highest odds to be hospitalized for chronic ACSCs. Conclusion: Inequities of access to health care among racial/ethnic minorities were most notable for autistic children with chronic ACSC conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: In prioritising the needs of their autistic children, parents often modify their own participation across leisure, social, and workforce activities. Few studies have examined the impact these modifications have on caregiver quality of life (QoL). The aim in the current study was to examine how parenting their autistic child/ren impacts parent's participation and QoL. Methods: Twenty primary caregivers (29–48 years, all female) of autistic children (7–11 years) were interviewed online about their participation in leisure, community, and employment activities including the impact of COVID-19. Results: Five themes with underlying subthemes were identified using reflexive thematic analysis. The themes were: (1) Reflecting on the important things in life, (2) Getting access to everything needed, (3) Barriers to participation in meaningful activities, (4) Facilitators of participation in meaningful activities, and (5) Participation through the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion: The findings highlight the importance of regular participation in meaningful activities for parents of autistic children and the support needed by them, particularly single parents, to achieve balance between meeting caring responsibilities and their own participation needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined patterns of verbal responsiveness in parents of toddlers (Mage = 20 months) later identified with autism (n = 121), developmental delay (n = 46), or typical development (n = 44) during an hourlong home observation. Parent verbal responsiveness (PVR) was compared using MANOVA across groups and by child expressive language phase. Multiple regression analyses controlling for child age and maternal education were employed to examine the extent to which PVR predicted variance in concurrent child social communication and prospective language skills. Parents provided synchronous responses approximately 90% of the time. Parents of children with autism and developmental delay used smaller proportions of responses that added linguistic information (i.e., expansions and follow-in directives for language) than those of children with typical development. Parents of children in the preverbal phase were more likely, on average, to affirm their children's acts of intentional communication or provide a follow-in directive for action that did not necessitate a verbal response than to expand or elicit language. Regression results indicated that parental use of expansions and follow-in directives for language made significant contributions to child language outcomes. The patterns we observed may reflect parents' attunement to their child's developmental level. Responsiveness to a child's focus of attention is vital in the earlier stages of language learning; however, results point to the potential importance of parental expansions and follow-in directives for promoting language development across groups in this sample. Directions for intervention research targeting PVR and language skills in toddlers with autism and developmental delays are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Processing real-world sounds requires acoustic and higher-order semantic information. We tested the theory that individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show enhanced processing of acoustic features and impaired processing of semantic information. Methods: We used a change deafness task that required detection of speech and non-speech auditory objects being replaced and a speech-in-noise task using spoken sentences that must be comprehended in the presence of background speech to examine the extent to which 7–15 year old children with ASD (n = 27) rely on acoustic and semantic information, compared to age-matched (n = 27) and IQ-matched (n = 27) groups of typically developing (TD) children. Within a larger group of 7–15 year old TD children (n = 105) we correlated IQ, ASD symptoms, and the use of acoustic and semantic information. Results: Children with ASD performed worse overall at the change deafness task relative to the age-matched TD controls, but they did not differ from IQ-matched controls. All groups utilized acoustic and semantic information similarly and displayed an attentional bias towards changes that involved the human voice. Similarly, for the speech-in-noise task, age-matched–but not IQ-matched–TD controls performed better overall than the ASD group. However, all groups used semantic context to a similar degree. Among TD children, neither IQ nor the presence of ASD symptoms predict the use of acoustic or semantic information. Conclusion: Children with and without ASD used acoustic and semantic information similarly during auditory change deafness and speech-in-noise tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) were considered as two neurodevelopmental disorders and had shared clinical features. we hypothesized that they have some common atypical brain functions and the purpose of this study was to explored the shared brain spontaneous activity strength alterations in early onset schizophrenia (EOS) and ASD in the children and adolescents with a multi-center large-sample study. A total of 171 EOS patients (aged 14.25 ± 1.87), 188 ASD patients (aged 9.52 ± 5.13), and 107 healthy controls (aged 11.52 ± 2.82) had scanned with Resting-fMRI and analyzed surface-based amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF). Results showed that both EOS and ASD had hypoactivity in the primary sensorimotor regions (bilateral primary and early visual cortex, left ventral visual stream, left primary auditory cortex) and hyperactivity in the high-order transmodal regions (bilateral SFL, bilateral DLPFC, right frontal eye fields), and bilateral thalamus. EOS had more severe abnormality than ASD. This study revealed shared functional abnormalities in the primary sensorimotor regions and the high-order transmodal regions in EOS and ASD, which provided neuroimaging evidence of common changes in EOS and ASD, and may help with better early recognition and precise treatment for EOS and ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emergency department (ED) visits for children with autism can present challenges due to the unique sensory needs of this population. This Quality Improvement (QI) project executed two Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles to create and implement a Sensory Toolkit in the ED for children with autism. Most caregivers (94%; n = 31/33) and healthcare providers (HCPs; 86%; n = 37/44) identified the need for sensory items in the ED. In PDSA Cycle 1, 100% of caregivers (n = 21) and HCPs (n = 3) agreed/strongly agreed that the ED Sensory Toolkit was helpful. In PDSA Cycle 2, 92% of caregivers (n = 12/13) and 100% of HCPs (n = 3) agreed/strongly agreed that they were helpful. The Sensory Toolkit was positively evaluated by caregivers of children with autism and HCPs during the child's visit to the ED. There is an opportunity to adapt the Sensory Toolkit for other EDs and areas of the hospital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Autism is a complex neurodevelopmental disability with global prevalence of one in 100 individuals. Poor access to interventions in both under‐resourced regions of high‐income countries and low‐ and middle‐income countries has deleterious effects on the health and wellbeing of individuals with autism and their families. Our objective was to utilize a reciprocal innovation framework and participatory methods to adapt and co‐develop a culturally grounded group‐based wellbeing and naturalistic developmental behavioural intervention (NDBI) training program for caregivers of young children with autism to be implemented in Kenya and rural Indiana. Methods: This study was conducted within the Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare (AMPATH) program. An evidence‐informed Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Intervention (NDBI) previously utilized in Indiana was adapted and iteratively refined using the Ecological Validity Framework (EVF) by a team of US and Kenyan disability experts. Key adaptations to the program were made across the EVF domains of language, persons, metaphors/content, concepts, goals, methods, and context. Results: Substantial cultural adaptations were made to the NDBI following the EVF model, including the addition of traditional Kenyan cultural practices, use of narrative principles, and focus on daily routines over play. Pepea, the adapted program, involves 10 group sessions covering content in basic education on autism, positive caregiver coping strategies, and behavioural skills training to promote child communication and reduce challenging behaviour. Key adaptations for Pepea were integrated back into a US NDBI caregiver training program. Conclusions: This study fills a critical gap by detailing the adaptation process of a caregiver wellbeing and naturalistic developmental behavioural training program for caregivers of children with autism in low‐resource settings. Our next steps are to report on mixed‐methods outcomes from pilot implementation. Our long‐term goal is to apply these insights to advance sustainable and scalable autism intervention services across the globe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rodriguez et al. (2022) discovered that teaching four component skills was sufficient to facilitate the emergence of intraverbal tacts across four applications with three participants. Our study replicated and evaluated an extension of this procedure that was directed at facilitating intraverbal tacts when a child learns the component skills but continues to fail to produce intraverbal tacts. The extension consisted of procedures to enhance the divergent control exerted by the auditory stimulus (i.e., the question) and the discriminability of joint control. Intraverbal tacts emerged for all three participants after undergoing the extension procedures. These results are discussed in the context of a conceptual analysis of intraverbal tacts and the potential role of joint control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Increasing evidence demonstrated that there are altered levels of both pro-and anti-inflammatory cytokines in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and pointed out that immune dysfunction may also relate to social deficits. This study aimed to investigate the effect of aquatic exercise combined with vitamin D supplementation on social interaction and two related cytokines (Interleukin-6 and Interleukin-10) in children with ASD. Materials & Methods Forty boys with ASD (mean age: 10.90; age range: 6-14 years) were randomly assigned to the three interventions (groups 1, 2, and 3) and one control group (each 10 participants). Participants in the group 1 and 3 received a 10-week aquatic exercise program. Subjects in groups 2 and 3 took orally 50,000 IU of vitamin D3/week. This study evaluated the serum levels of IL-6 and IL-10, as well as the participants' social interaction at baseline and postintervention. Results Compared to the control group, all three interventions improved social skills scores (p< 0.001). Surprisingly, the combination strategy could significantly reduce IL-6 and increase IL-10 serum levels in children with ASD. Conclusion Aqua-based exercise programs combined with vitamin D supplementation are recommended to benefit children with ASD and improve social and communication dysfunction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We assess theories that autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is heritable and transmitted through parental skills using data from Denmark. We construct parental skill measures by mapping Danish occupations to the Occupational Information Network (O*NET) survey of US occupations and principal factor analysis. We find that fathers' skills are linked to ASD in children. A one standard deviation increase in a systems and ordering skills factor correlates with a modest but statistically significant 0.041 percentage point (2.4 percent) increase in ASD incidence. There is a negative and slightly larger relationship with communication skills. ASD also is similarly correlated with Deming's (2017) routineness and social skills measures, and fathers again play larger roles. We also find evidence consistent with Baron-Cohen (2002) whereby extreme personality traits in parents affect ASD incidence; having two parents with high systems and ordering relative to communication skills leads to a 35 percent higher diagnosis rate than having parents with "balanced" skills. While all of these estimates are meaningful given the costs of ASD, they explain only a small fraction of variation in ASD diagnoses. Finally, although assortative mating on skills exists, we cannot detect a role for it in recent dramatic increases in ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Emotional regulation strategies are among the effective factors in improving the quality of life and general health of mothers with children with autism and attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder. Aim: This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of emotion regulation training on the quality of life of mothers of children with autism and separation anxiety disorder. Methods: The research method was semi-experimental with a pre-test-post-test design with a control group. The statistical population of the research included all mothers with children with autism spectrum disorder and separation anxiety disorder who were referred to the private offices of psychiatrists in Borujerd city in 2019, and 30 of them were selected by convenience sampling. The sample was homogenized and divided into two groups. The participants responded to the Beach Center Family Quality of Life Scale (2006) for the pre-test and post-test. After 8 sessions of 120 minutes of emotion regulation training for the mothers of the experimental groups, statistical analysis of covariance and SPSS-24 software were used to analyze the data. Results: In the present study, the average score of the family quality of life in the post-test stage in the group of mothers of children with autism and children with separation anxiety disorder was significantly higher than the mothers of the control group (P=0.001 and f=21.194). The results of the Bonferroni test and the comparison of means show that the average score of quality of life in the group of mothers with children with autism was higher than the group of mothers with children with separation anxiety disorder (P=0.012). Conclusion: Emotion regulation training is effective on the quality of life of mothers of children with autism and separation anxiety disorder, and it is recommended for mothers with children with neurodevelopmental disorders and attachment disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A correction is presented to the article "Repetitive Behaviors in Autism and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Systematic Review" which appeared in the July 2, 2024 issue.

This study aims to evaluate the video modeling technique during the dental appointment. A blinded randomized clinical trial was composed of 2 groups, consisting of 20 autistic children (4 to 12 years) in each group: control (did not watch the video before the consultation) and intervention (watched the video before the consultation). The primary outcome was the mean number of visits to perform a dental appointment. The number of consultations was analyzed by T-test or Mann-Whitney test. The results showed that the mean number of consultations in the intervention group was 1.5 (± 1.53) and in the control group 2 (± 1.77) (p ≤ 0.05). The video modeling technique can be effective in minimizing the number of dental consultations in autistic children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]