Child demographics associated with outcomes in a community-based pivotal response training program

Although knowledge about the efficacy of treatments such as pivotal response training (PRT) for children with autism is increasing, studies of large-scale effectiveness for and transportability to diverse community populations are needed. The current study provides a large-scale preliminary assessment of (a) the effectiveness of a community-based parent education PRT intervention and (b) whether specific child variables are associated with outcomes. One hundred fifty-eight families with children having an autism spectrum diagnosis participated. Children were heterogeneous with regards to age, gender, and race/ethnicity. Results indicate that all of the children showed significant improvements in adaptive functioning on the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (Sparrow, Balla, & Cicchetti, 1984). However, younger children (3 years old or younger) showed the least impairment at intake and the most improvement postintervention. This is one of the first large-scale community studies of PRT that included a diverse sample.