Predictors of individual differences in minimally verbal peer communication exchanges following peer-oriented social intervention.
Maayan Kedar, Nirit Bauminger-Zviely
PMID 36373862WHAT IT FOUND
Children with higher baseline social communication difficulties or restricted behaviors showed less progress in peer interactions.
However, those with greater sensory or executive challenges sometimes improved more with intervention, suggesting specific barriers might respond well to structured peer support.
Key findings
01Higher severity of autistic symptoms (social communication and restricted/repetitive behaviors) predicted poorer progress in peer exchange relevancy.
02In the conversation intervention, older children and those with lower verbal IQ showed larger progress, whereas in collaboration, younger children benefited more.
03Children with greater executive functioning difficulties and less adaptive sensory profiles (lower scores) demonstrated larger growth in relevancy following intervention.
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
The sample size was small (54 children), which limited the ability to examine complex interactions between multiple predictors simultaneously. The analysis focused on 'positive responders' for the linear model, which may have reduced the power to detect associations. The study could not account for nesting within schools, which might influence peer dynamics. The findings are specific to minimally verbal children on the autism spectrum and may not generalize to those with more speech. The 'relevancy' measure, while reliable, is a specific operationalization of social engagement that may not capture the full breadth of social interaction.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The study was part of a broader project funded by the National Institute for Intellectual Disabilities and Autism (Israel Ministry of Education).
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that sensory or executive deficits are predictors of poor response. In this study, children with these greater challenges actually showed larger progress in the intervention groups, suggesting these deficits may not be barriers to peer-mediated social gains when the intervention is appropriately structured.