Naturalistic Communication Training for Early Intervention Providers and Latinx Parents of Children with Signs of Autism
One 90-minute Zoom training plus two coaching calls doubled daily parent-child communication turns for Latinx toddlers with autism signs.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Three Latinx families with toddlers showing autism signs joined the study.
Each parent got one 90-minute Zoom training on naturalistic communication strategies.
Then they received two short coaching calls while playing with their child at home.
Researchers counted parent-child back-and-forth turns and child gestures before and after coaching.
What they found
All three families doubled their daily communication turns within weeks.
Children began using new gestures and simple signs on their own.
Parents said the short coaching felt doable and fit their busy lives.
How this fits with other research
Wetherby et al. (2018) used longer web videos and saw similar gains, showing brief live coaching can work just as well.
Dolezal et al. (2010) ran a 2-week in-person program with comparable results, proving telehealth saves travel time.
Bailey et al. (2022) tried 16 hours of online literacy training and found no reading gains — but their kids were older and the goal was harder, so the studies don't truly clash.
Nguyen et al. (2025) later used the same telehealth coaching model for dental visits, showing the method travels beyond autism communication.
Why it matters
You can teach parents powerful skills in under three hours total.
Try offering one live Zoom session plus two quick follow-ups to Latinx families on your wait-list.
Short coaching respects their time and still moves child communication forward.
Want CEUs on This Topic?
The ABA Clubhouse has 60+ free CEUs — live every Wednesday. Ethics, supervision & clinical topics.
Join Free →Schedule a single Zoom training for your next Latinx family and plan two 15-minute follow-up calls during their usual playtime.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
In this study, researchers implemented a brief training plus coaching program in naturalistic developmental behavioral intervention with three participant triads. Each triad consisted of an early intervention provider, an English-speaking Latinx parent, and that parent’s young child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or early signs of ASD who had limited vocal speech. The effects a single training session, plus two researcher coaching sessions were evaluated using a nonconcurrent multiple probes across participants design. Primary dependent variables included (a) the number of completed targeted communication turns between the parent and child and (b) the number of child independent target communication responses (gestures and manual signs) during family-selected routines. Additional measures examined whether parents used strategies taught to them during training, and whether early intervention providers addressed strategies taught via coaching. A social validity measure was used to determine parent and provider views of the training. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, training and post-training sessions were delivered via telehealth for two triads. While data trends and variability differed across triads, following training, all three families increased the number of completed target communication turns and all three children showed higher rates of independent communication responses. Parents and providers implemented strategies taught and reported positive effects of the program. Implications regarding the use of naturalistic intervention methods for Latinx families, the utility of brief training models to meet the needs of under-resourced early intervention programs, and potential uses of telehealth are discussed. The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10882-021-09794-w.
Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities, 2021 · doi:10.1007/s10882-021-09794-w