Group intensive family training (GIFT) for preschoolers with autism spectrum disorders

Abstract

Early, intensive behavioral intervention is effective in treating children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), but can be cost prohibitive. Expenses may be defrayed if children can benefit from parents acting as therapists. This quantitative case series examines the efficacy of the Group Intensive Family Training (GIFT) program, a 12-week (180 h, delivered 3 h each weekday) parent-training for preschoolers with ASDs. Parents were individually mentored in the hands-on application of behavior analytic techniques, implementing these skills in vivo within a group of six parent-child dyads. Seventy-two parents and children (ages 25-68 months) with ASDs participated in this study. Children's cognitive and adaptive functioning was assessed before and after the intervention program. Analyses revealed average gains of eight standard score points on the Mullen Early Learning Composite and five standard score points on the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Composite after 12 weeks of treatment. Additionally, 14% and 11% of the children moved from the 'impaired' to 'non-impaired' range on Mullen and Vineland composite scores, respectively. This preliminary investigation suggests that GIFT's behavioral, group parent-training can lead to significant, yet cost- and time-efficient gains for children with ASDs. Results must be interpreted with caution because of the absence of a control group. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.