Factors influencing the research participation of adults with autism spectrum disorders

The recruitment and retention of adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) into research poses particular difficulties; longitudinal studies face additional challenges. To date, factors influencing the participation of adults for ASD research have been unexamined. This article draws on a study conducted in 2014 to identify factors influencing the participation of adults in longitudinal autism research. Quantitative and qualitative data was obtained from 167 participants across Australia in four categories: adults with either high-functioning autism or Asperger syndrome; adults with ASD and an intellectual disability; carers of these adults; and neuro-typical adults. This article includes results for adults with ASD and their carers. Factors influencing participation were found to differ both between and within participant categories. These factors were classified as those arising from a participant’s values, which acted as either a motivator or a deterrent; and those based on convenience, which acted as either an enabler or inhibitor. While helping others was a key motivator for all, participants also sought personal benefits, which differed between categories. Belonging to a research community of like-minded people was also a motivator and enabler. The inconvenience of time and travel required was a key inhibitor; insensitivity to an individual’s needs and preferences for engaging with the world a key deterrent; maximising choice in all aspects of participant involvement a vital enabler; and the use of financial and other extrinsic rewards was found to be problematic

The Association Between Parent Engagement and Child Outcomes in Social Skills Training Programs: Discovering the Secret Agent Society in Partnership

Previous research in clinical, community, and school settings has demonstrated positive outcomes for the Secret Agent Society (SAS) social skills training program. This is designed to help children on the autism spectrum become more aware of emotions in themselves and others and to ‘problem-solve’ complex social scenarios. Parents play a key role in the implementation of the SAS program, attending information and support sessions with other parents and providing supervision, rewards, and feedback as their children complete weekly ‘home mission’ assignments. Drawing on data from a school-based evaluation of the SAS program, this study examined whether parents’ engagement with these elements of the intervention was linked to the quality of their children’s participation and performance. Sixty-eight 8-14 year olds (mean age 10.7) with a diagnosis of autism participated in the program. The findings indicated that ratings of parental engagement were positively correlated with children’s competence in completing home missions and with the quality of their contribution during group teaching sessions. However, there was a less consistent relationship between parental engagement and measures of children’s social and emotional skill gains over the course of the program

Predictors of change in stepping stones triple interventions : the relationship between parental adjustment, parenting behaviors and child outcomes

The current study explored the process of change in Stepping Stones Triple P (SSTP) using a community-based sample of 891 families of children with developmental disabilities (DD) who participated in an SSTP intervention at a community level. A preliminary analysis of outcome data indicated that SSTP intervention was effective in reducing parental adjustment difficulties, coercive parenting, and children’s behavioral and emotional difficulties immediately after the intervention. The effects were maintained at 12-month follow-up. The results also indicated that change in parental adjustment over the course of intervention was significantly associated with a change in parenting behaviors. However, change in parenting behaviors but not change in parental adjustment, predicted children’s behavioral and emotional problems following the intervention. The results suggest that positive parenting skills are the most salient ingredient driving the change in child behaviors in SSTP interventions

Implementation, Evalution and Maintenance of a Social-Emotional Skills Training Program for Children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder in a Specialist School Setting

Socialization difficulties in children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are often associated with peer rejection and impaired academic achievement. Schools might appear to offer an ideal setting for social-emotional skills (SES) instruction. However, common challenges to successful implementation of school-based programs include inadequate staffing and resourcing, and a lack of ASD-specific staff training. This paper describes how barriers to program implementation were overcome in a project evaluating the Secret Agent Society (SAS) SES training intervention within Autism Spectrum Australia (Aspect) specialist classes. Questionnaire data was collected from school staff over a one-year period. Findings supported the effectiveness of the adoption process used, and suggest that SAS was feasible and acceptable to school staff

Fitness to practise in clinical psychology training

Assessment of Fitness to Practise (FTP) guidelines within clinical psychology training programmes requires balancing the individual student’s right to pursue their vocation of interest and the rights of others with whom that person comes in contact, most especially clients. The past decade has seen an international growth in policies related to formal FTP assessment built into clinical training programmes leading to professional qualifications. We draw on data from a large Australian research project on clinical psychology training in Australia. This national survey of 35 clinical psychology programmes explored views from both clinical directors and clinical students. Recommendations on realistic ways to move forward in this area are offered

Anxiety and social worries in children with Asperger syndrome

Objective: The current study examined anxiety and social worries in a group of children with Asperger syndrome (AS). Method: Sixty-five children with AS were compared with a clinically anxious sample and a normative sample using parent and child reports. Results: Comparisons between clinically anxious children and children with AS showed similar scores on overall anxiety and on six anxiety subscales using child reports. Parent reports revealed higher ratings of overall anxiety and described children with AS experiencing more obsessive-compulsive symptoms and physical injury fears than clinically anxious children. Conclusions: Children with AS without a diagnosis of anxiety, present with more anxiety symptoms than a normal population and with a different profile than a clinically anxious population. Study limitations are identified and considerations for future research presented