Social and Behavioural Outcomes of School Aged Autistic Children Who Received Community-Based Early Interventions.

The comparison group received varied standard community interventions, and the study could not check how faithfully those interventions were delivered. Early intervention details were recalled by parents later, so they may be incomplete or biased. School resources and supports were not recorded, so school environment differences cannot be separated from intervention effects. The sample was small, and the school attitude finding may have been underpowered. Only parent reports were available; teacher reports were not obtained, so behaviour in the school setting was not observed directly. Parents were asked to report peer interactions they observed in the community, not necessarily school playground interactions. The study relied on parents' perceptions of children's attitudes towards school, not the children's own reports. Group membership reflected the intervention already received, so the study cannot show that one intervention caused the outcomes. Questionnaire sample sizes varied because not all caregivers returned all forms.

The paper states that La Trobe University funded the study. It does not report author conflicts of interest.

Do not conclude that G-ESDM caused better social or behavioural outcomes. Adaptive behaviour, social skills, problem behaviours and school attitudes did not differ between groups, and the comparison interventions varied. The play disruption difference was not supported by differences in other play or social outcomes.