title: Pivotal response group treatment program for parents of children with autism.
abstract: The number of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders is increasing, necessitating the development of efficient treatment models. Research has demonstrated that parent-delivered behavioral interventions are a viable treatment model; however, little research has focused on teaching parents in groups. The aim of this study was to demonstrate that parents can learn Pivotal Response Training (PRT) in group therapy, resulting in correlated gains in children's language. Baseline and post-treatment data were obtained and examined for changes in (a) parent fidelity of PRT implementation, and (b) child functional verbal utterances. Significant differences were observed for both variables. These findings suggest that parents can learn PRT in a group format, resulting in correlated child language gains, thus future controlled studies are warranted.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA. mendy.minjarez@seattlechildrens.org
authors.forename: Mendy Boettcher
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Minjarez
authors.forename: Sharon E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Emma M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Mercier
authors.forename: Antonio Y
authors.initials: AY
authors.lastname: Hardan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000628:therapy*; D001521:Behavior Therapy / Q000193:education*; D002648:Child; D002663:Child Language; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006801:Humans; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010290:Parents / Q000193:education*; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group; D014741:Video Recording