Interventions utilizing human-computer interaction (HCI) in autism rehabilitation have gained popularity, yet their efficacy has not been fully elucidated. This meta-analysis assessed 30 international studies from the past decade that employed HCIs for autism intervention. The findings revealed a moderate positive effect (g = 0.484) on improving…

This meta-analytic review examined the effectiveness of the interventions for promoting adolescents' prosocial behavior, and aimed to explain variability in the effectiveness. Thirty-three studies that used interventions for prosociality targeting adolescents and compared with a control group or had a pre-post comparison were included in the…

The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to synthesize the available research on the "Skills for Social and Academic Success" ("SASS") program, a school-based cognitive/behavioural intervention for adolescents with social anxiety disorder. A search of online databases, combined with reference list examination…

In contrast to Early Intensive Behavioral Intervention (EIBI), there are far fewer meta-analyses evaluating Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Interventions (NDBIs) (Schreibman et al., 2015). Indeed, Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT)--a prominent NDBI--lacks meta-analytic studies. In the context of developing a line of research on the…

Social interaction is a core deficit in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Therefore, parents and teachers need effective interventions to support students with ASD. This synthesis provides a quantitative analysis of single-subject studies that examine interventions to support social interactions in children with ASD. Results suggest…

Evaluation of evidence-based treatments is important for adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) given the increasing number of interventions available and the prevalence of ASD. In this study, we sought to evaluate the effectiveness of behavioral interventions for this population by conducting a meta-analysis of published…

In this review, we focus on research that has used technology to provide cognitive training--i.e. to improve performance on some measurable aspect of behaviour--in individuals with autism spectrum disorders. We review technology-enhanced interventions that target three different cognitive domains: (a) emotion and face recognition, (b) language and…

Bridging the gap between lab and clinic has become a rallying cry for a generation of treatment researchers, and identifying and overcoming barriers to successful dissemination of best-practice treatment has become a major public mental health priority. In this review, the authors argue that a key limit to accomplishing this goal may be found back…

Although the subject has been debated and examined for more than 3 decades, it is still not clear whether all psychotherapies are equally efficacious. The authors conducted 7 meta-analyses (with a total of 53 studies) in which 7 major types of psychological treatment for mild to moderate adult depression (cognitive-behavior therapy, nondirective…

The synthesis of 18 single subject research studies on early intervention for socially withdrawn children indicated that reinforcement and measurement of targeted socially interactive behaviors showed the largest effects, with some treatment (such as unreinforced modeling of behavior) showing little effect. There was little evidence for skill…

A report is given of a statistical analysis of the summary findings of 14 empirical studies on the effectiveness of human relations training programs for teachers. The study sought to determine the direction and size of the effect produced by training, and determine which programs were most effective. Program approaches included: (1) Social…