In particular , there is little evidence that the identified tools would be good at detecting change in intervention studies .
The obvious gaps in available outcome measurement include well-being and participation outcomes for children , and family quality -of-life outcomes , domains particularly valued by our informants ( young people with ASD and parents ) .
This is the first systematic review of the quality and appropriateness of tools design ed to monitor progress and outcomes of young children with ASD .
BACKGROUND The needs of children with autism spectrum disorder ( ASD ) are complex and this is reflected in the number and diversity of outcomes assessed and measurement tools used to collect evidence about children 's progress .
Relevant outcomes include improvement in core ASD impairments , such as communication , social awareness , sensory sensitivities and repetitiveness ; skills such as social functioning and play ; participation outcomes such as social inclusion ; and parent and family impact .
OBJECTIVES To examine the measurement properties of tools used to measure progress and outcomes in children with ASD up to the age of 6 years .
To identify outcome areas regarded as important by people with ASD and parents .
Social-communicative effects of the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) in autism spectrum disorders.
BACKGROUND The Picture Exchange Communication System ( PECS ) is a common treatment choice for non-verbal children with autism . However , little empirical evidence is available on the usefulness of PECS in treating social-communication impairments in autism . AIMS To test the effects of PECS on social-communicative skills in children with autism , concurrently taking into account st and ardized psychometric data , st and ardized functional assessment of adaptive behaviour , and information on social-communicative variables coded in an unstructured setting . METHODS & PROCEDURES Eighteen preschool children ( mean age = 38.78 months ) were assigned to two intervention approaches , i.e. PECS and Conventional Language Therapy ( CLT ) . Both PECS ( Phases I-IV ) and CLT were delivered three times per week , in 30-min sessions , for 6 months . Outcome measures were the following : Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule ( ADOS ) domain scores for Communication and Reciprocal Social Interaction ; Language and Personal-Social subscales of the Griffiths ' Mental Developmental Scales ( GMDS ) ; Communication and Social Abilities domains of the Vinel and Adaptive Behavior Scales ( VABS ) ; and several social-communicative variables coded in an unstructured setting . OUTCOMES & RESULTS Results demonstrated that the two groups did not differ at Time 1 ( pre-treatment assessment ) , whereas at Time 2 ( post-test ) the PECS group showed a significant improvement with respect to the CLT group on the VABS social domain score and on almost all the social-communicative abilities coded in the unstructured setting ( i.e. joint attention , request , initiation , cooperative play , but not eye contact ) . CONCLUSIONS & IMPLICATION S These findings showed that PECS intervention ( Phases I-IV ) can improve social-communicative skills in children with autism . This improvement is especially evident in st and ardized measures of adaptive behaviour and measures derived from the observation of children in an unstructured setting
In particular , there is little evidence that the identified tools would be good at detecting change in intervention studies .
The obvious gaps in available outcome measurement include well-being and participation outcomes for children , and family quality -of-life outcomes , domains particularly valued by our informants ( young people with ASD and parents ) .
This is the first systematic review of the quality and appropriateness of tools design ed to monitor progress and outcomes of young children with ASD .
BACKGROUND The needs of children with autism spectrum disorder ( ASD ) are complex and this is reflected in the number and diversity of outcomes assessed and measurement tools used to collect evidence about children 's progress .
Relevant outcomes include improvement in core ASD impairments , such as communication , social awareness , sensory sensitivities and repetitiveness ; skills such as social functioning and play ; participation outcomes such as social inclusion ; and parent and family impact .
OBJECTIVES To examine the measurement properties of tools used to measure progress and outcomes in children with ASD up to the age of 6 years .
To identify outcome areas regarded as important by people with ASD and parents .