Browsing by Subject "Parent training"
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Item The evidence-based drama practitioner : the design and implementation of a drama program for very young children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and their parents(2012-05) Ulrich, Christina Ann; Lazarus, Joan; Dawson, Kathryn M.; Falcomata, Terry S.This thesis explores the applications of a drama-based intervention program for very young children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and their parents. Drama-based pedagogy and practice is merged with behavioral principles from the world of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) to create an interdisciplinary program tailored specifically for the unique learning needs of children with ASD. This document offers a comprehensive overview of the history of diagnosis and treatment of ASD and the many factors that can influence relationships between children with ASD and their parents. A drama-based intervention program was designed specifically to address the communication and social skill deficits in children with ASD. In addition, the drama-based intervention program encouraged parents to use responsive teaching strategies to enhance and extend creative play with their child. The document concludes with recommendations for essential components of a drama-based intervention program for very young children with ASD and their parents.Item Parent training program to expand the food repertoire of children with sensory feeding disorders(2015-05) Hamill, Molly Andrea; Marquardt, Thomas P.; Medford, CydneyPurpose: The study aimed to determine if an eight-week parent-training program would be effective in expanding the food repertoire of 3-6 year old children with sensory feeding disorders. The aspects in question were whether this program was realistic for implementation into the daily life of parents of children with feeding disorders, the extent to which integrating activities before snack time would desensitize the child to undesired foods, and how parental support during food exploration would encourage the addition of new foods into the child's repertoire. Method: The investigator trained three parent participants to complete three activities before three different snack times each week for eight weeks. Each parent chose 9 target foods to be targeted during the program. The investigator provided guidance to each parent for how to encourage food exploration of these target foods during the three snack times. Parent participants reported which activities were completed, which foods were targeted, the level of exploration reached with each food, the parent's level of stress, and the success of the session on a data sheet for each snack time. The investigator met with each parent once a week to gather the data sheets and discuss each child participant's progress. Results: Participant 1 completed 24 sessions but did not acquire any of the 9 target foods into his repertoire. Participant 2 completed 24 sessions, added 1 new food to his repertoire, and will tolerate 2 additional target foods. Parent participants 1 and 2 reported that this program is realistic for their households. Participant three completed ten of the 24 sessions and did not acquire any new foods. Parent participant three reported that the program is not practical for implementation into her lifestyle. Parental level of stress and perceived success of the session were both dependent on the highest level of exploration that the child reached for each session. Conclusions: The ability to carry out the program at home was determined by the parent participant’s organizational skills and commitment to the program. Participating in three sessions a week was more beneficial than one session, or three sessions plus two private feeding therapy sessions.Item The relations between parent training, family messages, cognitive triad, and girls’ depressive symptoms(2012-08) Funk, Catherine Lee; Carlson, Cindy I., 1949-; Stark, Kevin Douglas; Keith, Timothy Z.; Gray, Jane; Loukas, AlexandraIt is important to understand the development of depression, and how a family component to treatment affects early adolescent girls’ depression given the association between depression and negative future outcomes. A potential vulnerability to depression is the cognitive triad, which encompasses beliefs about the self, world, and future and is shaped by early learning experiences. Research indicates that the vulnerability originates from parent-child relationships and family messages, which are important in the development of youth cognitive styles. Previous research also indicates that family variables are important factors to consider in the treatment of depression. The purpose of the current study was to expand previous research by examining the roles of perceived family messages and the cognitive triad in the development of depression for early adolescent girls. The study also explored whether parent gender differentiated how family messages affect girls’ cognitions and depressive symptoms. The study evaluated how the addition of a parent training component to a school-based, group-administered CBT intervention affected change in the model’s variables in comparison to group-administered CBT intervention alone and a monitoring control condition. Participants included early adolescent girls diagnosed with depression and caregivers in the parental treatment component. Girls were randomly assigned to a CBT, CBT+PT, or minimal contact control condition. Ratings of girls’ perceptions of family messages, cognitions, and depressive symptoms were obtained at pre-treatment and post-treatment. Results from structural equation modeling indicated significant effects from perceived family messages to girls’ cognitions. Further, girls’ cognitions mediated the relation between perceived family messages and girls’ depressive symptoms at post-treatment for participants within the CBT and monitoring conditions. No significant differences were evident between parent gender and perceived messages. Results indicated that the addition of a parent component to the CBT intervention did not significantly differ from the CBT intervention alone in its effects on the variable relations within the model at post-treatment. Supplemental analyses highlighted parent attendance as a significant factor, with larger effects from the family messages on girls’ cognitions appearing when parents attended majority (six or more) of the eight parent training sessions. Implications, limitations, and areas for further research are discussed.Item A review of parent training interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder and proposed guidelines for choosing best practices(2014-05) Sisavath, Jessica; Davis, Barbara L. (Barbara Lockett)The purpose of this project is to critically analyze and review parent training interventions published between the years 2000 to 2013 focused on enhancing social and communicative behaviors in young children between 3 to 10 years old with autism spectrum disorder. All studies involved a form of parent training in combination with an intervention type such as pivotal response training, milieu approach and naturalistic approaches. Overall, each study yielded positive outcomes for children with ASD, but data collection strategies, target goals, and outcome measures were variable. This review included an in-depth analysis of 16 studies of parent intervention programs evaluated based on their goals, methodology, and effectiveness of parent training on the children with ASD’s language skills. The review will present a set of guidelines for parents and professionals to use when deciding on the most effective and efficient parent training therapy for families who have children with ASD. Critically evaluating the available empirical research can help parents, therapists, and researchers more effectively consider viable options for parent training programs tailored to support the needs of children with ASD. Tables will summarize the findings to make the information more accessible. Implications for future research will follow the literature review.