scholarly journals Parental Responsiveness During Musical and Non-Musical Engagement in Preschoolers with ASD

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olivia Boorom ◽  
Valerie Muñoz ◽  
Rongyu Xin ◽  
Meredith Watson ◽  
Miriam Lense
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Free Play ◽  
Verbal Responses ◽  
Parental Responsiveness ◽  
Musical Play ◽  
Child Play ◽  
Play Interactions ◽  
Musical Engagement ◽  
Musical Activities ◽  
Parent Child

Parent-child play interactions offer an important avenue for supporting social development in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Musical play is a natural and ubiquitous form of parent-child play. As a familiar, reinforcing, and predictable activity, musical play may support parent-child interactions by scaffolding children’s attention to the play activities, while also providing parents with a familiar and accessible context to promote parental responsiveness. However, musical play may also impede interactions due to its sensory and repetitive components. 12 parent-child dyads of preschoolers with ASD were video-recorded during a ten-minute play session that included musical and non-musical toys. Interactions were coded for parent and child musical engagement, as well as parental responsiveness. Parent-child dyads varied in their amount of musical engagement during play, which was not related to children’s language level. Overall, parents showed similar levels of responsiveness to children’s play across musical and non-musical activities, but type of parental responsiveness differed depending on the play context. Parents provided significantly more physical play responses and significantly fewer verbal responses during musical vs. non-musical engagement with their child. There are substantial individual differences in children with ASD’s musical engagement during a parent-child free play. Children’s musical engagement impacted type of parental responsiveness, which may relate to the familiarity, accessibility, and sensory nature of musical play/toys. Results suggest that musical play/toys can both support and hinder different types of parental responsiveness with implications for incorporation of musical activities into interventions.

Improving a Parent Coaching Model of Music Interventions for Young Autistic Children

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eugenia Hernandez Ruiz ◽  
Blair B Braden
Keyword(s):  
Parental Stress ◽  
Family Satisfaction ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Music Intervention ◽  
Parent Coaching ◽  
Coaching Model ◽  
Parental Responsiveness ◽  
Observational Measures ◽  
Increase Risk ◽  
Parent Child

Abstract Parenting a child on the autism spectrum can be rewarding and enriching, but it may also increase risk of parental fatigue, stress, anxiety, and depression. Parent-mediated interventions contribute to increase family satisfaction and child social communication while helping to decrease parental stress and fatigue. Parent coaching, the education of parents in evidence-based strategies, has become common in the autism field. However, parent coaching in music therapy has only recently emerged and has limited research with families with an autistic member. In this study, we attempted to improve a previously published model of parent coaching, adapting only one aspect of the Early Start Denver Model (ESDM), the sensory social routine (SSR) to create a music intervention. Four parents participated in this 6-session parent coaching study. We compared the SSR-based intervention with and without music, in an alternating treatment design. Measures included parental responsiveness, child receptive and initiation joint attention, parent–child similar affect and synchronized gaze, and the Parent Coaching-ESDM (PC-ESDM) parent fidelity rating system. Results from these observational measures were mixed, with better parental responses in the no-music condition, but improved child responses and parent–child synchrony in the music condition for 3 out of the 4 participants. Parent learning increased for all participants, and 3 out of the 4 reached fidelity (a score of at least 80%), according to the PC-ESDM. Although mixed results were observed across participants, implications for practice are possible. Better outcome measures of this complex intervention are needed.

scholarly journals PRESS-Play: Musical Engagement as a Motivating Platform for Social Interaction and Social Play in Young Children with ASD

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 205920432093308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miriam D. Lense ◽  
Stephen Camarata
Keyword(s):  
Young Children ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Social Play ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Developmental Approach ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
The Press ◽  
Musical Engagement ◽  
Musical Activities

Musical experiences are ubiquitous in early childhood. Beyond potential benefits of musical activities for young children with typical development, there has long been interest in harnessing music for therapeutic purposes for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, there is debate as to the effectiveness of these approaches and thus a need to identify mechanisms of change (or active ingredients) by which musical experiences may impact social development in young children with ASD. In this review, we introduce the PRESS-Play framework, which conceptualizes musical activities for young children with ASD within an applied behavior analysis framework consistent with the principles of naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions. Specifically, the PRESS-Play framework proposes that musical activities support key elements of evidence-based approaches for social engagement including predictability, reinforcement, emotion regulation, shared attention, and social play context, providing a platform for delivery and receipt of social and behavioral instruction via a transactional, developmental approach. PRESS-Play considers that these factors may impact not only the child with ASD but also their interaction partner, such as a parent or peer, creating contexts conducive for validated social engagement and interaction. These principles point to focused theories of change within a clinical-translational framework in order to experimentally test components of social-musical engagement and conduct rigorous, evidence-based intervention studies.

scholarly journals Moving Toward Telehealth Surveillance Services for Toddlers at Risk for Autism During the COVID-19 Pandemic

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eugenia Conti ◽  
Natasha Chericoni ◽  
Valeria Costanzo ◽  
Roberta Lasala ◽  
Alice Mancini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
World Health ◽  
Child Psychiatrist ◽  
Psychological Burden ◽  
Child Play ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
Populations At Risk ◽  
Surveillance Protocol ◽  
Parent Child

Since 2016, the project “Early Bird Diagnostic Protocol for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)” funded by the Italian Ministry of Health has been operative at IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris (FSM), Pisa (IT), with the main aim of developing early age-specific diagnostic protocols by longitudinally enrolling two different populations at risk for ASD: (i) toddlers with older siblings with ASD (FR) and (ii) toddlers referred by a child psychiatrist or pediatrician for suspected ASD (CR). On January 30, 2020, when the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), 136 patients (85 FR; 51 CR; 93 males; 43 females) had been enrolled in the project with 324 completed time points and 64 still missing. Considering both the huge psychological burden on families with toddlers at risk for ASD during the lockdown and the longitudinal studies reporting the positive “surveillance effect” in terms of a better outcome in at-risk toddlers, our priority has been to maintain regular contact and support to enrolled families. To do this, the research team, being authorized for smart-working research activities, has set up a detailed remote surveillance protocol (RSP). The RSP includes three online interviews and one online video registration of parent–child play. In the current community case study, the authors report the telehealth procedure and discuss possible future directions in developing remote assessment and new evaluation modalities for ecological parent–child play video recordings in at-risk populations. Hopefully, the surveillance protocol will further improve our ability to detect risk and activate early tailored intervention.

scholarly journals The characteristics and factors of the internalizing and externalizing behaviours of children at high risk for autism spectrum disorder

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ning Ding ◽  
Yanling Ren ◽  
Jiying Jiang ◽  
Mengyao Zhai ◽  
Huan Shao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Parenting Stress ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Free Play ◽  
Behavioural Problems ◽  
Parent Child Interactions ◽  
Positive Engagement ◽  
Internalizing And Externalizing ◽  
Parent Child

Abstract Background: Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are at risk of developing internalizing and externalizing problems. However, information on the early development of behavioural problems and the contributing role of parent-child interactions among infants at high risk for ASD is lacking. We tested whether parent-child interactions and parenting characteristics were associated with behavioural problems during the infant and toddler periods and examined the effects of the intervention on behavioural problems.Methods: This study collected data from 91 infants at high for risk ASD and 68 matched typically developing (TD) infants. At baseline, behavioural observation was performed during free play with all the enrolled families, and in the ASD group, a second behavioural observation was performed after 12 weeks of the Play-based Communication and Behavior Intervention (PCBI). The coding of parent-child interactions was based on the behaviour of parents and children during free play. These data included the child’s engagement with each parent and behavioural problems.Results: During free play, infants in the ASD group showed more internalizing behaviours (p<0.001) and externalizing behaviours (p<0.05) and less positive engagement (p<0.01) than TD infants. After 12 weeks of intervention, we found that infants at high for risk ASD had reduced internalizing behaviours (p<0.001), increased parent positive engagement (p<0.001), and improved parent-child interactions (p<0.001). In the regression analysis, we found that parenting stress had an impact on infants’ externalizing behaviours (△R2 = 0.215). Parent negative engagement had an impact on infants’ internalizing behaviours (△R2 = 0.451).Conclusions: The findings on the contribution of both parent negative engagement and parent-child interactions to behavioural problems suggests that the amelioration of parent negative engagement is an important factor for the mitigation of behavioural problems. The amelioration of parenting stress is associated with externalizing behaviours. Early intervention and parental factors are important for preventing behavioural problems and possible comorbidity problems in the future.

scholarly journals Parents, peers, and musical play: Integrated parent-child music class program supports community participation and well-being for families of children with and without autism spectrum disorder

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miriam D Lense ◽  
Sara Beck ◽  
Christina Liu ◽  
Rita Pfeiffer ◽  
Nicole Diaz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Community Participation ◽  
Family System ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Program Participation ◽  
Musical Play ◽  
Music Class ◽  
Parent Child

Opportunities for meaningful community participation may influence the development and well-being of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their families as well as impact how community members perceive and understand ASD. In the current study, we aimed to understand how a parent-child integrated music class program could be used to promote community participation and family well-being. Caregivers of preschoolers (2-5 years of age) with ASD and those of peer children with typical development were interviewed about their participation in a parent-child integrated music class program. Thematic analysis of interviews revealed that all caregivers viewed program participation as positive. Caregivers emphasized increasing connections within families, such as through strengthening parent-child bonds, as well as connections across families, including increased understanding of ASD and sensitivity to the experience of parenting. Many caregivers perceived the class as supporting their parenting and impacting their children’s behavior in meaningful ways. Interview themes were supported by measures of caregiver and child program receipt, including questionnaires about family music engagement throughout their time in the class program and behavioral coding of children’s engagement during music classes. Findings suggest that integrated community experiences such as parent-child music classes may impact whole family well-being, highlighting the value of integrated community participation experiences at the level of the family system. Parent-child music classes may provide a productive and accessible context for supporting integrated community experiences.

scholarly journals Training community health nurses to measure parent–child interaction: a mixed-methods study

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 445-450
Author(s):  
Penny Levickis ◽  
Cristina McKean ◽  
Elaine Walls ◽  
James Law
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Child Health ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Free Play ◽  
Parental Responsiveness ◽  
Additional Tool ◽  
Child Interaction ◽  
Parent Child Interactions ◽  
Parent Child Interaction ◽  
Parent Child

Abstract Background This study aims to determine whether the Parental Responsiveness Rating Scale (PaRRiS) completed at child age 24–30 months can be used by community child health nurses (CCHNs) to reliably measure the quality of parent–child interactions in practice. Methods A mixed-methods design was used involving CCHNs working in public health settings. Five CCHNs recruited from the North-East of England were trained to use PaRRiS. Thirty parent–child dyads attending their routine 24–30-month check were observed. Nurses rated parent–child dyads during 5 min of free-play using PaRRiS. The free-play sessions were video recorded and rated blind by the first author to the nurse observation. Semi-structured phone interviews were conducted with the five CCHNs once observations of parent–child interactions were complete. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, anonymized and thematically analyzed. Results Two-thirds of participating parents were mothers. Half the families (15/30) were from the 10% most deprived areas based on the English Index of Multiple Deprivation. The average PaRRiS score was 3.03 [standard deviation (SD) = 0.8; all ratings were &lt;5.0]. Reliability between the first author (‘gold standard’) and CCHNs was excellent [Intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC): 0.85; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.67–0.93]. CCHNs found PaRRiS aligned well with current practice and was acceptable to parents. There was no evidence of a relationship between social disadvantage and PaRRiS scores. Conclusions With further development and evaluation work, PaRRiS could potentially be incorporated into existing universal health services to provide child health nurses with an additional tool for identifying families most likely to be in need of parent–child interaction interventions.

scholarly journals The characteristics and factors of the internalizing and externalizing behaviours of children at high risk for autism spectrum disorder

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ning Ding ◽  
Huiyun Gao ◽  
Jiying Jiang ◽  
Mengyao Zhai ◽  
Huan Shao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Parenting Stress ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Free Play ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Behavioural Problems ◽  
Parent Child Interactions ◽  
Internalizing And Externalizing ◽  
Parent Child

Abstract Background The behavioral characteristics of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are not only affected by their disease, but also by their parenting environment. HR-ASD has the risk of developing internalization and externalization problems. How the early development of these behavioral problems is affected by parent-child interaction is worth exploring. We tested whether parent-child interactions and parenting characteristics were associated with behavioural problems during the infant periods. Methods This study collected data from 91 infants at high risk for ASD and 68 matched typically developing (TD) infants, about their internalizing and externalizing behavioural problems and engagement states (i.e. positive, negative, and parent-child interactions), using free play paradigm. Parent measures were assessed using the Broad Autism Phenotypic Questionnaire (BAPQ) and Parenting Stress Index Short Form (PSI-SF) questionnaire. The core symptoms of ASD were assessed using the the Autism Diagnostic Observational Schedule (ADOS). Results During free play, infants in the HR-ASD group showed more internalizing (P < 0.001) and externalizing (P < 0.05) behaviours and less positive engagement (P < 0.01) than the TD group. In the regression analysis, we found that parenting stress had an impact on the infants’ externalizing behaviours (△R2 = 0.215). Parent negative engagement had an impact on the infants’ internalizing behaviours (△R2 = 0.451). Conclusions The present study revealed that children at high risk for ASD exhibited more severe internalizing and externalizing behavioural problems than TD group. The parent negative engagement is associated with behavioural problems. The findings on the contribution of parents’ factors to behavioural problems suggests that the parenting stress and parent-child interactions are important factors for mitigating behavioural problems.

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