Towards a Treatment for Intolerance of Uncertainty in Young People with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Development of the Coping with Uncertainty in Everyday Situations (CUES©) Programme.
Jacqui Rodgers, Anna Hodgson, Kerry Shields and 3 others
PMID 27796728WHAT IT FOUND
Parents rated this eight-week group programme as highly useful and satisfactory.
While child anxiety measures showed only modest changes, parents reported significant improvements in their own stress and confidence. The study confirms feasibility and acceptability, not clinical efficacy.
Key findings
01The programme demonstrated excellent retention with 97% attendance across all three groups, and every parent who completed the course stated they would recommend it.
02Parents reported a large reduction in their own intolerance of uncertainty and stress, with effect sizes indicating medium to large improvements in wellbeing.
03Changes in child outcomes were modest, with small effect sizes for parent-reported child intolerance of uncertainty and anxiety.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study was designed to test feasibility and acceptability, not whether the treatment works. It did not include a control group or randomisation. The sample size was very small, with only fourteen parents participating, which prevents any statistical analysis of the results. All outcome data were collected via parent report. No direct measures were taken from the children themselves, and there was no long-term follow-up to see if changes lasted. There was no way to determine if the intervention itself caused the improvements, as the children were not assessed for other concurrent treatments or natural developmental changes.
Declared interests
The study was funded by The Children's Foundation.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the modest changes in child anxiety scores as evidence that the programme fails to help children. The study was not powered to test efficacy, and the authors note that exposure to uncertainty might initially increase anxiety before it improves. The large improvements seen in parents' own wellbeing are the most reliable finding, but this does not prove the child's symptoms were reduced by the programme.