Self-regulated compliance in preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder: The role of temperament and parental disciplinary style.
Preschoolers with autism need help shifting attention and benefit most when parents stay warm and prompts carry extra reinforcement.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team watched the preschoolers, half with autism and half typical. They filmed each child during a ten-minute cleanup task. Parents filled out forms about their discipline style and the child’s temperament.
What they found
Kids with autism ignored or said “no” to twice as many requests. Only one in four could stop and restart the task on their own. Typical kids did that three times more often. Warm, supportive parents had children who followed more directions, both groups.
How this fits with other research
Wilder et al. (2020) later showed you can fix the gap. They paired a favorite toy with each prompt in a three-step guided-compliance script. Compliance jumped for two preschoolers with autism who had failed the script or reinforcement alone. The 2020 study extends Sharon’s picture: the deficit is real, but it’s treatable.
Planer et al. (2018) found the same before Wilder. Relevant high-probability requests raised compliance when they were varied, not fixed. Again, simple ABA moves closed the hole Sharon measured.
Caplan et al. (2019) add the parent piece. Responsive parenting forecast later social skills in 4- to young learners with autism. Sharon shows the same style helps right at age three, during cleanup. Together the papers trace a line: warm parent → better self-control → easier compliance.
Why it matters
When you see non-compliance, don’t assume defiance. Check if the child can shift attention back to the task. Coach parents to stay calm and descriptive. Add brief high-p sequences or guided compliance with a reinforcer. These small tweaks turn Sharon’s warning into a treatment plan you can start on Monday.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Regulatory difficulties are common in children with autism spectrum disorder. This study focused on an important aspect of self-regulation-the ability to willingly comply with frustrating demands of socialization agents, termed "self-regulated compliance." We studied compliance to parental demands in 40 preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder and 40 matched typically developing preschoolers, during separate interactions with mother and father, while engaging in two paradigms: toy pick-up and delayed gratification, which tap the "do" and "don't" aspects of self-regulated socialization at this age. Parents' disciplinary style was micro-coded from the two paradigms and child temperament was parent reported. Compared to their typically developing peers, children with autism spectrum disorder showed more noncompliance and less self-regulated compliance to parental demands and prohibitions and greater temperamental difficulties across several domains. No group differences were found in parental disciplinary style. Child self-regulated compliance was associated with parental supportive disciplinary style and with child attention focusing. Findings highlight the importance of parental supportive presence in structuring the development of socialization in children with autism spectrum disorder. Implications for parent-child emotion regulation interventions are discussed.
Autism : the international journal of research and practice, 2016 · doi:10.1177/1362361315615467