Parent perspectives on treatment: A mixed methods analysis of PEERS® for Preschoolers.
Isita Tripathi, Christine T Moody, Elizabeth A Laugeson
PMID 37306138WHAT IT FOUND
Parents of autistic preschoolers who completed PEERS® for Preschoolers reported changed parenting and described their children's peer interactions as improved.
Preparing children and environments before social opportunities was the strategy most linked to better long-term parent and child outcomes.
Key findings
01Most interviewed parents continued to use PEERS® skills and social coaching strategies years after treatment.
02Parents commonly described their child as more socially competent, but some described persistent social challenges.
03Parents coded for priming showed greater long-term decreases in child problem behavior and parenting stress scores than parents not coded for priming.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
Only 24 of 45 eligible parents were interviewed, a 53% response rate. The study used an archival clinical database and did not independently confirm autism diagnoses or measure IQ. Parents were not asked direct questions about each strategy, so some may have used strategies without mentioning them. Parents who talked more may have generated more coded themes, not because they used more strategies. The outcome comparisons were between parents who did or did not spontaneously mention strategies, not randomly assigned treatment groups. The program included child group, parent group, mock playdates, homework, and social coaching, so the contribution of any single component cannot be separated.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest and received no financial support for the research, authorship, or publication.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as proof that PEERS® for Preschoolers caused long-term improvements. The program included child group, parent group, didactic lessons, puppet shows, games, mock playdates, homework, and social coaching, so no single component can be credited. The outcome comparisons were between parents who did or did not spontaneously mention priming, not randomly assigned groups.