Cognitive and adaptive behavior outcomes of behavioral intervention for young children with intellectual disability.

The team gave preschoolers with intellectual disability about 10 hours of behavioral intervention each week.

They compared the kids to peers who got the usual mix of therapies.

After one year they measured IQ and daily-living skills.

The ABA group posted large, significant gains in both IQ and adaptive behavior.

Low-intensity ABA beat the eclectic menu, even without autism in the picture.

Eldevik et al. (2006) saw only small gains with a similar 12-hour dose, but that sample was mostly autism plus ID. The 2010 study shows the same dose works better when ID is the only diagnosis.

Bush et al. (2021) later pooled many trials and called ABA “evidence-based” for communication and daily skills in kids under eight. The 2010 paper is one of the bricks in that wall.

Hayward et al. (2009) ran a one-year trial too, yet used 36 hours a week and still got strong IQ gains. The 2010 study proves you can get big results with far fewer hours if the child has ID alone.

You can recommend low-intensity ABA for preschoolers with ID and expect strong cognitive and adaptive gains. Ten hours a week is doable in most clinics and schools, so insurance and staffing hurdles drop. Start early, track IQ and daily skills, and you have solid evidence the child should move ahead.