Staff and School Factors Affecting Implementation of ASD Interventions in Schools

描述（由申请人提供）：K01指导研究科学家发展奖的目的是支持申请人发展必要的技能，成为在学校环境中实施和维持自闭症相关干预措施的独立研究人员。自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）是一种复杂的终身发育障碍，在美国每88名儿童中就有1名受到影响。随着越来越多的ASD儿童进入公立学校，学校实施和维持基于证据的干预措施（ebi）来改善儿童的学业、行为和社会结果是势在必行的。2012年跨机构自闭症协调委员会ASD研究战略计划指出，缺乏在社区环境中成功实施ebi，并且没有具体的研究来检查这些问题。这个K01应用程序利用了与费城学区现有的大学社区合作伙伴关系，系统地检查了在城市公立学校大规模实施学区授权的自闭症EBI的问题。在科学及社会事务署署长David Mandell及一组专家顾问的指导下，拟议的培训及研究活动将使申请人能够：1)了解哪些组织因素会影响在学校的实施；2)发展混合方法设计方面的专业知识，以了解组织因素如何促进或阻碍公立学校的实施过程；3)获得开发实施干预措施的专业知识，以解决可修改的变量，以改善学校自闭症ebi的使用和维持。与这些培训目标相关的研究活动包括三个相互依存的目标。目标1将使用定量方法来检查员工和学校层面的因素，作为ASD儿童EBI实施和维持的预测因素。目标2将使用定性方法，通过仔细检查为自闭症儿童实施EBI的高绩效和低绩效教室子集的实施过程，进一步探索目标1中发现的教师和学校层面的因素。最后，在目标3中，申请人将制定一项实施干预措施，以支持学校使用和维持自闭症教育基础设施。这些研究项目的发现有可能为学校使用ebi提供必要的支持，并显著改善公立学校ASD儿童的学业、行为和社会结果。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The purpose of this K01 Mentored Research Scientist Development Award is to support the applicant in developing the skills necessary to become an independent researcher in the implementation and sustainment of autism-related interventions in school settings. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex and lifelong developmental disability that affects 1 in 88 children in the United States. With the growing number of children with ASD enrolled in public schools, it is imperative that schools implement and sustain evidence- based interventions (EBIs) to improve children's academic, behavioral, and social outcomes. The 2012 Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee Strategic Plan for ASD Research states that successful implementation in community settings of EBIs is lacking, and there are no specific studies that examine these issues. This K01 application capitalizes on an existing university-community partnership with the School District of Philadelphia to systematically examine implementation issues of a district-mandated autism EBI in urban public schools on a large scale. Under the mentorship of David Mandell, ScD, and a team of expert consultants, the proposed training and research activities will enable the applicant to: 1) understand which organizational factors affect implementation in schools; 2) develop expertise in mixed methods design to understand how organizational factors promote or impede implementation processes in public schools; and 3) acquire expertise in developing implementation interventions to address modifiable variables to improve the use and sustainment of autism EBIs in schools. The research activities associated with these training goals include three aims that build upon each other. Aim 1 will use quantitative methods to examine staff- and school-level factors as predictors of implementation and sustainment of an EBI for children with ASD. Aim 2 will use qualitative methods to further explore the staff-and school-level factors uncovered in Aim 1 by closely examining the implementation processes for a subset of high and low performing classrooms implementing an EBI for children with ASD. Lastly, in Aim 3, the applicant will develop an implementation intervention to support schools in their use and sustainment of autism EBIs. Findings from the proposed research projects have the potential to provide schools with the necessary supports to use EBIs and markedly improve the academic, behavioral, and social outcomes of children with ASD in public school settings.