Pulling Back the Curtain: Issues in Conducting an Intervention Study with Transition-Aged Youth with ASD and their Families
Stay loose on timing, format, and goals when you coach families of transition-age autistic youth—listen first, teach second.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Burke et al. (2018) ran a parent-training program for families of autistic teens leaving high school. The goal was to help parents find and use adult services.
The authors wrote a plain-language report of what went right and what went wrong. They share tips on timing, meeting format, and picking goals that fit each family.
What they found
The team learned that strict schedules and one-size lessons do not work. Families needed night or weekend slots, phone or video options, and goals that matched their real-life needs.
Listening first, then adjusting the plan, kept families coming back. Flexibility mattered more than perfect lesson plans.
How this fits with other research
Aleman-Tovar et al. (2025) later tested a six-session Spanish advocacy course for Latinx caregivers. Knowledge and empowerment went up, showing Burke’s flexible model works when tailored to culture and language.
Ferguson et al. (2021) placed transition tools inside primary-care clinics. Half of doctors still skipped the tools, proving Burke’s point that staff buy-in and time are major hurdles.
Straiton et al. (2021) asked community providers why parent training stalls for Medicaid families. The top barrier was family-level stress—no time, no transport—echoing Burke’s call to adjust timing and delivery mode.
Why it matters
If you coach transition-age youth, drop the fixed calendar. Offer phone or video nights, let families pick the first goal, and check in monthly to tweak the plan. Small shifts boost show-up rates and real-world use of adult services.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The transition from high school to adulthood is difficult for youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their families. Recognizing these challenges, there is a small but emerging body of literature testing interventions to improve the transition process. But there are many challenges in performing intervention research that have yet to be fully addressed. We discuss issues that should be considered when conducting interventions with individuals with ASD to improve the transition to adulthood, drawing from our study of a parent training to facilitate access to adult services during the transition years. Issues covered include: (1) timing (when is an intervention most effective?); (2) mode of delivery (what is the best way to present information?); (3) outcomes (how can intervention outcomes be accurately measured?); (4) target population (who is the intervention designed to help?); and (5) level of intervention (who should the intervention target?). Our answers, though preliminary, show the need to be flexible, to adopt a trial-and-error stance, and to listen to the needs—both explicit and implicit—of youth with ASD and their parents as they navigate the difficult transition from adolescence to adulthood.
Autism, 2018 · doi:10.1177/1362361317753016