| Abstract: |
This study examined the effects of the Son-Rise Program (SRP), an intensive treatment aimed to improve child-initiated social communication in children with autism. Six children between the ages of 47 and 78 months were provided with 40 h of SRP, with pre to post-treatment behavioral changes tested using a novel passive interaction probe task. Results showed an increase in the frequency of spontaneous social orienting and gestural communication for the experimental children, compared to six age- and behaviorallymatched control children with autism. In addition, for the children who received treatment, the duration of social dyadic interactions and total time spent engaged in social interaction increased from pre- to post-treatment. These findings suggest that intensive intervention focused on fostering child-initiated interaction increases social-communicative behaviors in children with autism. |
