Telehealth Training in Principles of Applied Behavior Analysis for Caregivers of Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Zoom-based ABA parent class lifts knowledge and lowers stress for families of little kids with autism.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Batton et al. (2022) tested an online parent-training program called OASIS. The program teaches ABA basics to moms and dads of preschoolers with autism.
Training happened over Zoom during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Families stayed home and learned skills like reinforcement and prompting.
What they found
Parents knew more ABA facts after the course. They also felt less stress and more confidence.
Families said the telehealth format worked well for them. Quality-of-life scores moved up a little.
How this fits with other research
Parry-Cruwys et al. (2022) showed that short online modules can teach graduate students new skills fast. Batton adds parents of toddlers to that same win column.
Schertz et al. (2018) asked teens with autism how tech helps them. Both papers back the idea that people with ASD and their families like tech tools.
Vereenooghe et al. (2013) reviewed therapy for adults with intellectual disability. Their positive signal lines up with the good vibes parents gave OASIS, even though the ages differ.
Why it matters
You can run parent training without a clinic. A stable Zoom link and the OASIS slides are enough to boost parent know-how and calm. Try opening your next parent group online; send the OASIS handouts ahead of time and track stress with a quick five-item scale.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. government declared a state of emergency and many applied behavior analysis clinics temporarily closed. The current study described a pilot of an existing manualized caregiver behavior skills training, the Online and Applied System of Intervention Skills (OASIS), to promote telehealth caregiver training during the pandemic and facilitate the start of early intervention for families on waitlists. The OASIS telehealth curriculum trains caregivers to use applied behavior analysis with their children with autism spectrum disorder. Pre/post measures suggest that OASIS modestly improved parent knowledge, improved perceived quality of life, decreased stress, improved caregiver self-efficacy, and was viewed positively by participating families.
Education & Treatment of Children, 2022 · doi:10.1007/s43494-022-00081-7