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Parents of children with autism experience significant stress and challenges in daily life that can impact their well-being. Using a daily diary method, the present study examined the same-day and next-day associations between child-related stress, social support, coping, and parental well-being outcomes (i.e. life satisfaction, positive and negative affect). A total of 76 parents (58 mothers) of autistic children participated in the study and completed daily diaries for 14 consecutive days. Multilevel modeling analyses indicated that child-related stress and social support were associated with same-day life satisfaction only in mothers. Moreover, positive coping on a given day was not only related to more positive affect and higher life satisfaction on the same day but also to higher life satisfaction on the next day, whereas negative coping was only related to higher negative affect and lower positive affect on the same day in both parents. These findings emphasize the benefits of positive coping and social support in raising children with autism, which may contribute toward the further development of existing support programs for parents of children with autism.

Given the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic on children's schooling and learning, evidence for interventions implemented by parents is urgently needed. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a parent-mediated LEGO intervention on the social interactions of four children on the autism spectrum in China. The intervention involved four sets of two parents engaging with their child in collaborative LEGO construction, with each person assigned a role as Engineer, Supplier, or Builder. Using a multiple probe design across the four family triads, the intervention effectively increased spontaneous social initiations and responses in all four children, and these behaviors were maintained for 6 weeks following the intervention. The effect on inappropriate interactions was not detected; parental prompts increased in initial intervention sessions but decreased over time. Parents implemented the intervention at home with high fidelity. Efficacy of the intervention and potential benefits of virtual parent training are discussed.

The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of an instructional sequence involving simple tact, category tact, and match-to-sample instructions on the emergence of metaphorical extensions about emotions for children with autism spectrum disorder. Three Chinese children (1 girl, 2 boys, 7-8 years old) with autism spectrum disorder participated. Results indicate that the participants' intraverbal responses for metaphorical extensions about emotions emerged or increased without direct training after completion of the instructional sequence to which verbal instruction had been added. All three children maintained the metaphorical extensions about emotions for 4 weeks.

The study sought to evaluate effects of self-directed training on teachers' ability to implement computer-assisted instruction (CAI) designed to teach bi-directional naming (BiN), a skill that involves incidental learning, to children with developmental delays. Three special education teachers in China participated in this fully online study. A single case design with multiple probes across participants was used. At baseline, we conducted 1.5-2 hours of online lecture-based training about BiN and its teaching procedures, followed by evaluation of teacher implementation using picture cards. In the intervention condition, we provided teachers access to the web-based CAI BiN program and its accompanying manual in order for them to learn the system and evaluate their implementation of BiN instruction. Compared to baseline, all three teachers implemented BiN instruction with greater accuracy and in less time in the intervention condition. Implications for training special education teachers to use CAI to teach BiN for students with developmental delays are discussed.

Although numerous meta-analyses of single-case design (SCD) research have been published, no systematic review has been conducted to holistically reveal the trends in content focus, and the state-of-the-art practices in conducting SCD meta-analyses for school-aged students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This study synthesized the intervention/practices and participant characteristics, and identified the trends and limitations in previous SCD meta-analyses. Systematic review of meta-analyses can contribute to the summary of current evidence and further identify ways to improve SCD meta-analyses. We conducted a systematic literature search and identified 30 articles that met the inclusion criteria. Findings suggest that multiple interventions may be employed to improve various outcomes for school-aged students with ASD. Researchers may use our findings to map out the intervention and targeted outcomes and identify underresearched areas. Meanwhile, findings suggest several measures to improve the quality of future SCD meta-analysis practices and publication, such as documenting racial/ethnicity information, using a set of potential moderators to conduct heterogenetic analysis, and effects in reducing publication bias. Future research directions are also provided.

Schools must accurately implement effective interventions targeting deficits and/or learning challenges for secondary school-aged students with disabilities to fulfill their responsibility of preparing students for life after high school. School psychologists supporting this mission may be frustrated by the limited research conducted with secondary students. This study is designed to describe the evidence base for interventions used with secondary school students by relying on N = 1 research design studies. N = 1 research design can establish a functional relationship between the independent and dependent variable(s) and allows for the complexity of real world intervention implementation as experienced by practicing school psychologists, making N = 1 an ideal research base on which to make practical decisions in secondary schools. Although interventions increased secondary school-aged students' performance across studies, not enough well-designed studies were conducted across research groups for any specific intervention (i.e., meeting the minimum criteria established by What Works Clearinghouse) at the secondary school level. As a result, school psychologists will need to rely heavily on their professional judgment when combining the best available evidence with client and contextual variables to make individualized decisions for secondary school students. An application of this evidence-based practice decision-making model for a secondary student is provided.

Parenting a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can be tremendously challenging. It is important to identify factors associated with parenting stress. This study examined the indirect effect of parental dispositional mindfulness on their anxiety and depressive symptoms and family quality of life (FQOL) through mindful parenting and then parenting stress. Seventy-nine Chinese parents (24.1% fathers) of children with ASD aged 3-13 years completed self-report questionnaires. Results indicated that higher dispositional mindfulness was associated with higher mindful parenting, which was related to lower parenting stress, and further related to lower anxiety and depressive symptoms and higher FQOL. The findings provide valuable insight into the potential pathways through which general mindfulness and mindful parenting may positively impact parental outcomes.

This study explored the experiences of professionals and parents from the United Kingdom and China of autism-relevant policies, school involvement, and applied behavior analysis-based interventions. Semistructured interviews involving 36 parents and professionals and direct behavioral observations were carried out of five parents and three professionals. Results found: (1) a lack of autism support and applied behavior analysis-related services in both countries; (2) applied behavior analysis-based intervention was not as widely endorsed by healthcare or educational systems in the United Kingdom; Chinese parents faced challenges around inclusive education and accessing high-quality services and there was a social stigma attached to autism; (3) a limited awareness and application of early intensive behavior intervention in both regions; and (4) intervention fidelity with regards to the practice of one particular applied behavior analysis-based intervention, discrete trial teaching, was similar and increased with ongoing training. Professional and parental experiences were discussed in the context of policy and educational involvement. This study illustrates the need to support children with autism and to consider regional adaptations of evidence-based practice of behavior analysis for the affected population.

As more and more evidence accrues in support of family-centered approaches to disability services, parents' experiences raising children with disabilities is receiving increasing attention internationally. The literature on parents of children with disabilities, however--whether intellectual disability (ID) or other chronic health conditions (OCHC)--tends to focus on mothers as the primary research subject. To address the paucity of research focused on fathers' experiences of raising a child with disabilities, I surveyed over 4500 fathers of children with disabilities in Mainland China. The surveys focused on fathers' perceptions of their children, their perceptions of family functioning, and their perceptions of their own needs for emotional support. Results derived from statistical analyses of the data suggest that fathers tend to believe their children with ID are harder to raise than other children, and that they more often do things that irritate them and make them feel angry. Fathers of children with ID also tend to perceive their family functioning as somewhat problematic. Generally, these fathers are disinclined to seek emotional support from outside their families, although fathers from the majority Han population and fathers who have greater than high school education are more likely to seek support than are fathers from minority ethnic groups and fathers with lower educational background. Comparisons are made with fathers of children with OCHC. Implications of the findings are identified and lines of further research suggested.