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 .
Goal Attainment Scaling as an Outcome Measure in Randomized Controlled Trials of Psychosocial Interventions in Autism
Goal attainment scaling ( GAS ) holds promise as an idiographic approach for measuring outcomes of psychosocial interventions in community setting s. GAS has been criticized for untested assumptions of scaling level ( i.e. , interval or ordinal ) , inter-individual equivalence and comparability , and reliability of coding across different behavioral observation methods . We tested assumptions of e quality between GAS descriptions for outcome measurement in a r and omized trial ( i.e. , measurability , equidistance , level of difficulty , comparability of behavior sample s collected from teachers vs. research ers and live vs. videotape ) . Results suggest GAS descriptions can be evaluated for equivalency , that teacher collected behavior sample s are representative , and that varied sources of behavior sample s can be reliably coded . GAS is a promising measurement approach . Recommendations are provided to ensure method ological quality
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 .