Study of Speech Treatment for Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders Who Do Not Talk Yet

Purpose

We at the Yale Child Study Center are conducting a research project for children with ASD who are between three and six years of age and not yet talking. We are looking for children in this age range who say fewer than 10 words. We will be contrasting two different treatment programs, one that uses very structured discrete trial methods, and one that is more naturalistic. In order to study these treatments most effectively, we will need to assign children to treatments randomly. That means that you will not be able to choose which treatment your child gets, or to change the treatment group to which s/he is assigned. Both treatments will be delivered individually for 12 weeks, with three 45 min. sessions per week by a specially trained speech-language pathologist. No matter which treatment your child receives, we will ask all families to participate in parent training also. This training will help you carry over the treatment once the 12 weeks are over. We will also ask you to bring your child back six months after treatment ends so we can see whether the effects of the treatment have lasted over time.

Criteria for participation

• Children with a diagnosis of ASD
• Ages 3 to 6 years
• Uses fewer than 10 words
• Must be able to attend treatment sessions at Yale Child Study Center 3x/week for 12 weeks
• At least one parent must be able to participate in 4 evening parent training sessions

Contacts

Elizabeth Schoen, M.S. CCC-SLP
(203) 737-1267
elizabeth.schoen@yale.edu

Moira Lewis, M.S. CCC-SLP
(203) 764-7490
moira.lewis@yale.edu