Long-Term Treatment Outcomes of PEERS® for Preschoolers: A Parent-Mediated Social Skills Training Program for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Social skills taught through PEERS for Preschoolers stay strong years later, but behavior and stress supports need booster sessions.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Researchers tracked families who finished PEERS for Preschoolers one to five years earlier. PEERS is a parent group that teaches social skills for kids with autism.
They called parents and asked: Did your child keep the social gains? Did behavior problems and stress stay low? No new coaching was given.
What they found
Kids still talked and played better than before the program.
But earlier drops in tantrums and parent stress had faded. Gains were mixed, not across the board.
How this fits with other research
Factor et al. (2022) later showed the same PEERS lessons work over Zoom. Their small pilot saw modest gains, matching the in-person start seen here.
Ventola et al. (2014) used PRT and also found social growth in preschoolers. Like this study, they saw skills rise, but each child improved at a different pace.
Shabani et al. (2006) ran LEGO therapy and tracked kids for three years. They reported lasting social gains, similar to the PEERS follow-up. Both papers agree social skills can stick, even if other behaviors do not.
Why it matters
You can tell parents that PEERS preschool coaching gives lasting social benefits. Plan extra help for behavior and stress if those goals matter. Use Factor’s telehealth model when travel is hard.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Although parent-assisted social skills interventions may reduce early social challenges in preschool-aged children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), limited research has explored whether intervention gains maintain several years after treatment. This study examined the durability of PEERS<sup>®</sup> for Preschoolers, a parent-mediated social skills training program for preschool-aged children with ASD and other social challenges. Twenty-nine parents reported on child and family outcomes 1-5 years following treatment. Results demonstrated maintenance of treatment gains on measures of ASD-related social impairments including social communication, social responsiveness, social motivation, and peer engagement. Post-treatment improvements in problem behaviors and parenting stress were not maintained at long-term follow-up. Implications of these results are discussed.
, 2021 · doi:10.1007/s10803-021-05147-w