Coaching Bilingual Speech-Language Student Clinicians and Spanish-Speaking Caregivers to Use Culturally Adapted NDBI Techniques with Autistic Preschoolers.
Teach bilingual staff in English, then let them coach Spanish-speaking caregivers in Spanish—NDBI scores still shoot up.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team trained bilingual speech-therapy grad students in English. Then the students coached Spanish-speaking moms of autistic preschoolers in Spanish.
They used a culturally tweaked version of NDBI: play on the floor, follow the child’s lead, and add Spanish words the family already uses.
A multiple-baseline design tracked how well the moms learned the moves.
What they found
Every adult hit mastery with very large effect sizes. Moms kept using the skills weeks later.
Kids talked and played more, and families said relationships felt warmer.
How this fits with other research
Maliki et al. (2025) did the same trick in Arabic. Local facilitators learned parenting skills in Arabic and then taught other parents. Both studies show: train in the local language, get big gains.
Bearss et al. (2022) also re-tooled a caregiver program, but for teachers in English-only schools. McGuire moves the idea into bilingual homes, not classrooms.
Zhu et al. (2020) used remote Zoom feedback to lift caregiver-coaching fidelity in China. McGuire stayed in-person, yet both hit 90 % plus accuracy, so the path—live or Zoom—matters less than clear feedback.
Why it matters
If you serve Spanish-speaking families, train your bilingual staff first in English. Then let them coach parents in Spanish. You keep technical precision and gain cultural trust. One week of BST plus daily feedback is enough to see mastery and happier kids.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
A cascading coaching model was used to teach bilingual speech-language pathology (SLP) graduate student clinicians and Spanish-speaking caregivers to implement naturalistic developmental behavioral intervention (NDBI) techniques with autistic preschoolers. Two triads (each consisting of a graduate student clinician, a minimally vocal child diagnosed with autism, and a caregiver) participated in the study. Following the cascading approach, a lead instructor (with limited Spanish conversational skills) coached bilingual student clinicians (in English) to apply culturally adapted NDBI with child participants. Following additional instruction in coaching, student clinicians coached caregivers in Spanish. Effects were evaluated using a multiple methods approach consisting of multiple probes across participants single case experimental design and a qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews with adult participants. All adult participants increased their use of targeted NDBI skills including elicitation techniques (creating communication temptations, using wait time, and prompting) and response techniques (reinforcing children’s communication with natural consequences and providing a contextually relevant vocal model), demonstrating large to very large effect sizes. Although qualitative findings indicated areas for improvement (e.g., additional Spanish supports for clinicians), thematic analysis revealed additional benefits in terms of positive changes across adult learning, behavior, and perspectives; child communication; and child-caregiver relationships.
Behavioral Sciences, 2025 · doi:10.3390/bs15091292