Interventions to facilitate communication in autism.

Luiselli (2000) looked at every autism communication study and pulled out six big gaps. The team wanted a roadmap for future research that would help kids talk more, sooner, and with more people.

They read piles of papers and grouped needs into themes like spontaneity, early precursors, family help, and real-life language use.

The review says we still need ways to make words come out without prompts, start intervention before speech is missing, teach parents to run sessions, and target social chat, not just labels.

In short, the field was heavy on clinic drills and light on home, peers, and true conversation.

Giesbers et al. (2020) later ran an RCT that did exactly what Luiselli (2000) asked: parents got coached and kids gained joint attention and social communication four months later. The newer trial extends the old call for family-mediated work.

Bathelt et al. (2019) narrowed the same broad agenda to AAC devices, showing the 2000 themes naturally cover later deep-dives into picture boards and speech apps.

Ganz et al. (2009) gave a live example: moms and dads taught PECS at home and kids asked for new toys with self-made symbols. Again, a single-case experiment brought one of the six priorities to life.

Ferguson et al. (2022) moved the parent-training model online; children showed variable but real communication gains after telehealth coaching. The delivery method updated, yet the core idea—equip families—stayed identical to Luiselli (2000).

When you write a parent training goal, borrow the 2000 checklist: will the child use the skill without adult cues, with new people, and in daily routines? If any box is blank, add a spontaneity or generalization plan. The twenty-year thread from Luiselli (2000) to Ferguson et al. (2022) shows these targets are still winning moves.