A randomised clinical pilot trial to test the effectiveness of parent training with video modelling to improve functioning and symptoms in children with autism spectrum disorders and intellectual disability.
Group parent-training with video modelling gives preschoolers with ASD plus ID a reliable, low-cost boost in communication and non-verbal IQ.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Researchers ran a small pilot RCT with preschoolers who have both autism and intellectual disability. Parents met in groups and watched short videos that showed how to prompt, model, and praise communication at home.
Kids in the video group kept getting their usual community services. The team then compared communication scores and non-verbal IQ after the training ended.
What they found
Children whose parents got the video training made small but real gains in communication. The same kids also showed a medium jump in non-verbal IQ compared with the control group.
Parents did not need extra staff or one-on-one coaching to see these changes.
How this fits with other research
McGeown et al. (2013) tried a similar idea in schools without randomizing. The new RCT keeps the parent-group format but adds video clips and tighter design, building on that early work.
Kostulski et al. (2021) tested parent training for kids with ID only and saw behavior drop. Lotfizadeh et al. (2020) now shows the same training style can also lift communication and IQ when autism is in the mix.
Lindgren et al. (2020) ran another 2020 RCT, but used telehealth FCT and saw huge behavior cuts. The face-to-face video model in D et al. produced smaller gains, yet it fits clinics with weak internet and no private rooms.
Why it matters
If you run a busy clinic or school with large parent wait-lists, group video training is a cheap way to push skills forward. You can run six families at once, show a two-minute clip, then have parents practice while you coach. No extra travel, no extra staff, and you still see measurable IQ and language growth for the most complex preschoolers.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Poor eye contact and joint attention are early signs of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and important prerequisites for developing other socio-communicative skills. Teaching parents evidence-based techniques to improve these skills can impact the overall functioning of children with ASD. We aimed to analyse the impact of conducting a group parent-training intervention with video modelling to improve the intelligent quotient (IQ), social and communication functioning and to minimise symptoms in children with ASD and intellectual disability (ID). METHODS: Study design: A multicentre, single-blinded, randomised clinical pilot trial of parent training using video modelling was conducted. SAMPLE: Sixty-seven parents of children with ASD, aged between 3 and 6 years and with IQs between 50 and 70, were randomised: 34 to the intervention group and 33 to the control group. Intervention program: The intervention group received parent training over 22 sessions, and the control group received the standard community treatment. INSTRUMENTS: Pre-evaluation and post-evaluation (week 28), the following were used: Autism Diagnostic Interview, Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scale I, Snijders-Oomen Nonverbal Intelligence Test, Autism Behaviour Checklist and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. DATA ANALYSIS: Intention to treat and complier-average causal effect (CACE) were used to estimate the effects of the intervention. RESULTS: There was a statistically significant improvement in the Vineland standardized communication scores in CACE (Cohen's d = 0.260). There was a non-statistically significant decrease in autism symptomatology (Autism Behaviour Checklist total scores) and a significant increase in the non-verbal IQ in the intervention group. After the false discovery rate correction was applied, IQ remained statistically significant under both paradigms. The effect size for this adjusted outcome under the intention-to-treat paradigm was close to 0.4, and when considering adherence (CACE), the effect sizes were more robust (IQ's Cohen's d = 0.433). CONCLUSIONS: Parent training delivered by video modelling can be a useful technique for improving the care given to children with ASD and ID, particularly in countries that lack specialists.
Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 2020 · doi:10.1111/jir.12759