EARLY COMMUNICATION INTERVENTION IN AUTISTIC CHILDREN

本研究的目的是评估一种特殊干预（反应性和前语言环境教学：RPMT）对改善幼儿自闭症的社会沟通和运动模仿技能的有效性。完整的RPMT和前语言环境教学都有效地提高了一组发育迟缓儿童和三名自闭症儿童的社会沟通能力。提出的因变量是(a)有意沟通，(b)眼神交流，(c)发起联合注意，(d)协调使用最常用的行为来传达发起联合注意，(e)注意积极的情感分享，(e)运动模仿，以及(f)表达性词汇水平。我们将测试治疗对这些因变量的影响是否会随着(a)预处理儿童和父母特征以及(b)非项目治疗参与的几个特征而变化。我们也将测试是否治疗效果在6个月的随访表达性词汇发生和介导启动联合注意。为了控制暴露在唤起交流和测试位置的情况下，将使用对比处理。儿童将被随机分配接受治疗。儿童将被随机分配接受治疗。在6个月的时间里，每一种治疗方法的儿童都将接受相同次数的治疗。交流、词汇和运动模仿的评估将在治疗前、治疗后和6个月的随访期间进行。审查员和编码员将对处理分配视而不见。

The purpose of this proposal is to evaluate the effectiveness of a specific intervention (Responsivity and Prelinguistic Milieu Teaching: RPMT) on improving social communication and motor imitation skills in young children with autism. Both the full RPMT, and the Prelinguistic Milieu Teaching component, have been effective in increasing several aspects of social communication in a group of children with developmental delays and in 3 children with autism. The proposed dependent variables are (a) intentional communication, (b) communication with eye contact, (c) initiating joint attention, (d) coordinated use of the behaviors most frequently used to convey initiating joint attention, (e) attention to positive affect sharing, (e) motor imitation, and (f) expressive vocabulary level. We will test whether treatment effects on these dependent variables vary as a function of (a) pretreatment child and parental characteristics and (b) several characteristics of non-project treatment involvement. We will also test whether treatment effects on 6- month follow-up expressive vocabulary occur and are mediated by initiating joint attention. To control for exposure to situations that evoke communication and to the testing location, a contrast treatment will be used. Children will be randomly assigned to treatments. Children will be randomly assigned to treatments. Children in each treatment will be seen an equal number of times for 6 months. Assessments of communication, vocabulary, and motor imitation will occur at the pre-treatment, port-treatment, and 6 month follow-up periods. Examiners and coders will be blind to treatment assignment.