Purpose: Despite group-level improvements in active engagement and related outcomes, significant individual variability in response to early intervention exists. The purpose of this preliminary study was to examine the effects of a group-based Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Intervention (NDBI) on active engagement among a heterogeneous…

Many autistic children require support to meet their learning needs. Given the heterogeneity within the autism spectrum it is plausible that different types of support might be better suited to different children. However, knowledge on what interventions work best for which children is limited. We examined the outcomes of autistic preschool-aged…

Naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions are an empirically supported intervention approach for young autistic children. Despite the prevalence of disruptive behaviors among autistic children, most manualized caregiver-mediated naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions include limited formal guidance on when and how to manage…

Naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions (NDBIs) are evidence-based interventions for young children with autism spectrum disorder. There has been growing interest in implementing manualized NDBIs within the early intervention (EI) system without a clear understanding of how these programs and the broader strategies encompassed within…

Early intervention supports infants and toddlers with confirmed or suspected autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in achieving optimal outcomes, and caregiver-implemented NDBIs are recommended as a developmentally appropriate intervention approach for very young children and their families. Research highlights discrepancies between early…

Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Interventions (NDBIs) have a strong and growing evidence base. Yet, NDBIs are not implemented on a wide scale within early intervention programs for children on the autism spectrum. Potential reasons for the slow adoption of NDBIs likely stem from the differing theoretical orientations of behavioral and…

Autistic children often require support in various competencies during early childhood. Parents and practitioners must collaborate for optimal child outcomes. Previous research indicates that parent-mediated learning supports children's social communication, encourages parent-practitioner collaboration, and fosters parental feelings of support.…

Limited research has examined the active ingredients and mechanisms of change of naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions (NDBIs). The present study used an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design to develop a comprehensive Theory of Change of Project ImPACT, an empirically supported NDBI. We used qualitative data from interviews…

During their early years, children with autism may not meet the same communication and language milestones as their peers (Wodka et al., 2013). Many children with autism experience language delays and may rely on one-word or phrase speech, rather than using grammatically fluent speech (Anderson et al., 2007; Wodka et al., 2013) that is often…

An expanding evidence base has advocated for delivery of naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions (NDBIs) within community systems, thus extending the reach of these practices to young autistic children. The current study examined provider-reported use of NBDIs within a Part C Early Intervention (EI) system and the extent to which…

This study compared the outcome of Early Intensive Behavioral Intervention when supervision was given over videoconference for half of the meetings. This started after 3 months of intervention. The participating children were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and were randomly placed in either the videoconference group or in the onsite…

Proponents of autism intervention and those of the neurodiversity movement often appear at odds, the former advocating for intensive treatments and the latter arguing that autism must be accepted as a form of diversity. The history of behavioral intervention has understandably outraged many in the Autistic community, though many still value…

In this study, we evaluated the effect of the Future Center Early Intensive Behavioral Intervention program on children's skills longitudinally by sex, age, and diagnoses as dependent variables. Sixty-seven children ages 1-6 years and diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder were followed up for 2 years in Syria. They were assessed twice across the…

Mounting empirical support for early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) has increased demand for early intervention services for children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which may include a variety of components such as discrete-trial instruction (DTI) or natural environment teaching (NET). Many caregivers are now learning…

Many autistic children access some form of early intervention, but little is known about the value for money of different programs. We completed a scoping review of full economic evaluations of early interventions for autistic children and/or their families. We identified nine studies and reviewed their methods and quality. Most studies involved…