Brief report: effects of cognitive behavioral therapy on parent-reported autism symptoms in school-age children with high-functioning autism.
This pilot study tested the effect of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) on parent-reported autism symptoms. Nineteen children with autism spectrum disorders and an anxiety disorder (7-11 years old) were randomly assigned to 16 sessions of CBT or a waitlist condition. The CBT program emphasized in vivo exposure supported by parent training and school consultation to promote social communication and emotion regulation skills. Parents completed a standardized autism symptom checklist at baseline and posttreatment/postwaitlist and 3-month follow-up assessments. CBT outperformed the waitlist condition at posttreatment/postwaitlist on total parent-reported autism symptoms (Cohen's d effect size = .77). Treatment gains were maintained at 3-month follow-up. Further investigation of this intervention modality with larger samples and broader outcome measures appears to be indicated.
Wood
Jeffrey J
JJ
University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA. jeffwood@ucla.edu
Drahota
Amy
A
Sze
Karen
K
Van Dyke
Marilyn
M
Decker
Kelly
K
Fujii
Cori
C
Bahng
Christie
C
Renno
Patricia
P
Hwang
Wei-Chin
WC
Spiker
Michael
M
D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D002648:Child; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; D056348:Emotional Intelligence; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents; D010865:Pilot Projects; D016037:Single-Blind Method; D012919:Social Behavior