In this systematic review, we aimed to identify the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children/adolescents with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The protocol was registered on PROSPERO CRD42021255848. Articles were selected from PubMed, Embase, and LILACS according to these characteristics: patients from zero to 18 years old,…

Parenting interventions have been shown to be successful in supporting parents to address children's challenging behaviour. This systematic literature review explores the effectiveness of Non-Violent Resistance (NVR), a specific parenting intervention which aims to help parents cope with children's violent and controlling behaviour. It is a…

Tacts facilitate social interaction, and a strong tact repertoire can lead to the development of other verbal operants. For children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the development of a tact repertoire can reduce stereotypical and repetitive language and increase social communication, as functional language may reduce the amount of…

Social stories are a commonly used intervention practice in early childhood special education. Recent systematic reviews have documented the evidence base for social stories, but findings are mixed. We examined the efficacy of social stories for young children (i.e., 3-5 years) with challenging behavior across 12 single-case studies, which…

The COVID-19 pandemic led the United Kingdom (UK) into a national lockdown in March 2020. The UK government has acknowledged that children and young people (CYP) with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) were left behind during the pandemic. This integrative literature review aims to investigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on…

Valid and reliable teacher ratings serve as the foundation for screening and assessment of youth with behavioral disorders and twin studies offer an opportunity to study those ratings. We conducted a meta-analysis of 15 empirical investigations of aggressive and rule-breaking behavior using teacher ratings in the context of a twin research design.…

Background: Pivotal response treatment (PRT) is suggested to be an effective treatment for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Objectives: We aimed to compile evidence examining the effectiveness of PRT on social communication, social interaction, and repetitive behavior for children with ASD. Methods: We performed a systematic and…

Background: Mental health professionals play an important role in providing care and treatment for adults with intellectual disabilities. A number of studies use qualitative methods to explore the experiences of these professionals and their perspectives regarding the mental health services for this population. A systematic review using…

The purpose of this systematic review was to investigate the learning, social, and psychological outcomes of students with moderate, severe, and complex disabilities (MSCD) in inclusive settings. The review discusses barriers to conducting rigorous research in this field. Whilst an initial literature search located 1,338 records, only 18 were…

Background: In typical development, primarily contextual factors at the family level are clearly associated with child developmental outcomes. In contrast, knowledge about the contextual factors influencing the developmental characteristics of children (0-12 years) with severe to profound intellectual disability is scarce. Method: Through…

Including animals in autism intervention is growing in both research and practice. A systematic literature review was conducted to collate and synthesize all empirical research on animal-assisted intervention (AAI) for autism published from 2012 to 2015. Findings from 28 included studies revealed that AAI programs generally include one animal per…

Senate Bill (SB) 163 would alter the current law that requires coverage of behavioral health treatment (BHT) for autistic spectrum disorder (ASD). SB 163 would expand the definition of BHT to include treatment modalities based on developmental theory, would make technical changes to definitions related to network adequacy, would prohibit denial of…

Increasing numbers of students with autism are being educated in mainstream schools. However, outcomes for students with autism are poor when compared to typical students and students with other developmental disabilities. In order to better understand facilitators and barriers to success at school for students with autism, research into the…

The number of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is rapidly increasing, and there is a struggle within our educational system to meet the needs of these students. While there is a growing awareness among general classroom teachers about strategies that can be implemented to ensure positive gains for students with ASD, there is still a…

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), a chronic disorder beginning in childhood, is identifiable and diagnostically valid during the preschool years. Compared to school-aged children, preschoolers have not received as much attention in the literature. Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) is an empirically-supported parent training…