The aim of the present study was to examine the additive effect of elements of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) on the video game Mindlight in decreasing anxiety of children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). A non-concurrent multiple baseline design with 8 children with ASD in the age of 8-12 was used. CBT did not have the hypothesized…

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience obsessions and compulsions similar to those specified in "DSM-5" for obsessive compulsive disorder yet little controlled research exists on treating these behaviours. Thirty-seven children (7-13 years old) were randomly assigned to a 9-week functional behavior-based cognitive…

Therapeutic alliance is often an important aspect of psychotherapy, though it is rarely examined in clients with autism. This study aims to determine the child pre-treatment variables and treatment outcomes associated with early and late alliance in cognitive behaviour therapy targeting emotion regulation for children with autism. Data were…

Anxiety interventions involving social skills training and CBT for youth with ASD have shown promise, but few studies have examined the effects on social functioning or the maintenance of treatment gains. This study evaluated change in social skills during a randomized controlled trial of CBT and during the 1-year follow-up for 25 adolescents with…

Symptoms of autism spectrum disorder may influence alliance in psychotherapy. This study examined therapeutic alliance and its relationship with child characteristics and anxiety treatment outcomes in youth with autism spectrum disorder. Youth (N = 64) with autism spectrum disorder and co-occurring anxiety (7-16 years, IQ > 70) received 16…

Little is known about the alliance between therapists and children with autism spectrum disorder who are receiving psychological therapies in outpatient treatment settings. This study examined the therapeutic alliance in children with autism spectrum disorder and clinical anxiety, who were receiving cognitive behavioral therapy in a randomized,…

The number of young adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) enrolled in higher education institutions has steadily increased over the last decade. Despite this, there has been little research on how to most effectively support this growing population. The current study presents data from a pilot trial of two novel intervention programs…

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often present with comorbid psychopathology including problems with emotion regulation. The goal of the present research was to investigate the feasibility of a multicomponent manualized cognitive behavior therapy treatment program for improving emotion regulation in youth with ASD 8-12 years of age.…

This article presents an individual intervention combining cognitive-behavioral and behavior-analytic approaches to target severe emotion dysregulation in verbal youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) concurrent with intellectual disability (ID). The article focuses on two specific individuals who received the treatment within a therapeutic…

This study examined optimal guidelines to assess treatment response and remission for anxiety in youth with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) using the Pediatric Anxiety Rating Scale (PARS). Data was collected for 108 children aged 7-16 years with comorbid anxiety and ASD before and after receiving cognitive behavior therapy. Optimal cut-offs on the…

Objective: To examine the efficacy of a modular cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) protocol relative to treatment as usual (TAU) among children with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and clinically significant anxiety. Method: A total of 45 children (7-11 years of age) with high-functioning ASD and clinically significant anxiety…

Students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), though academically capable, can have difficulty succeeding in college. Evidence-based intervention to promote effective problem solving may improve quality of life, as well as success and satisfaction in college. This study adapted and piloted a group-based cognitive-behavioral intervention program,…

The purpose of this study was to assess the cognitive skills of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) thought to be necessary for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Forty children with ASD and forty age-matched typically developing children between the ages of 7-12 years participated. Groups were comparable with regard to nonverbal IQ,…

Anxiety disorders, including social phobia, occur often in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD; Gillott, Furniss, & Walter, 2001; Leyfer et al., 2006; Simonoff et al., 2008); however, little is known about the conceptualization and treatment of social phobia in this population. The current study presents the case of "James," a 6-year-old…

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) represent a continuum of cognitive and social problems that vary considerably in both impact and presentation for each child affected. Although successful interventions have been developed that target specific skill deficits often exhibited by children with autism, many of those interventions are exclusively…