Brief online parent-led early intervention for childhood autism: A randomised-controlled trial

Background: Child behavioural and emotion regulation, and social communication; and parental confidence and mental health, all contribute to developmental outcomes for autistic children; however, there are limited programmes which integrate support across these domains. Methods: We report on a parallel, assessor-masked randomised controlled trial used to evaluate a brief, parent-led intervention, ParentWorks-Spectrum . Parents of 100 children aged 2–5 years with autism Level 2/3 and behavioural difficulties were randomly assigned (1:1) to ParentWorks-Spectrum ( n = 49) or Waitlist ( n = 51). ParentWorks-Spectrum involved 12–15 weekly 60- to 90-min online sessions of parenting intervention that covered three synergistic targets: child behavioural/emotional regulation, child social communication, and parental teamwork and mental health. Efficacy was assessed for primary (child conduct problems, Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory behavioural intensity and problem, and Social Responsiveness Scale, Second Edition autism features) and secondary (child social-emotional functioning and global functioning, parent sense of competence, parenting practices, mental health, and inter-parental conflict) outcomes. Results: At postintervention, there were moderate to large improvements in the Intervention ( n = 45) compared with the Waitlist group ( n = 46) on three of four primary outcome measures: conduct problems (diff = −0.91, 95% confidence interval = −1.55 to −0.26), Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory intensity (diff = −27.84, 95% confidence interval = −43.76 to −11.92), and Social Responsiveness Scale, Second Edition total (diff = −11.76, 95% confidence interval = −22.84 to −0.68). Effects were maintained at 3-month follow-up. Improvements were found for all but one secondary outcome and did not significantly differ for mothers versus fathers. Conclusions: A brief synergistic intervention delivered by telehealth that integrates child and parenting domains has benefits across core and associated autism features, and positive functioning in parents, including fathers. Trial registration: ANZCTR #12618001866291 https://www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=381133&isReview=true