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The Social ABCs is an early intervention program for toddlers showing social-communication challenges that may be signs of autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
The Social ABCs is parent-mediated: This means that parents learn a set of strategies for helping their toddler communicate and interact socially. This learning occurs with the support of a coach and a parent manual.
This intervention program falls under the umbrella of Naturalistic Developmental Behavioural Interventions. Parents or other primary caregivers work with a trained Social ABCs coach to learn the intervention strategies in their child’s natural environment, using play-based activities and daily routines that their child finds most motivating.
The Social ABCs was developed for toddlers, aged 12 to 36 months, who have suspected or confirmed autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or related social-communication challenges.
There are currently two versions of the Social ABCs:
The Social ABCs has 2 main targets:
Child communication (intentional, directed, functional vocal communication)
Sharing meaningful, positive emotions with a primary caregiver
The standard Social ABCs program is supported by evidence from a pilot study and a two-site randomized control trial (RCT). The RCT study demonstrated that the group of toddlers and parents who received the intervention made greater gains (compared to a waiting list control group who received community-based “treatment as usual”) in several areas of child development and parent learning. Specifically, parents in the intervention group learned the strategies, and toddlers who received the intervention made gains in their social-communication skills at a rate that was higher than their peers who did not receive the intervention (note that all toddlers in the ‘control’ group were offered the intervention after completion of the control phase).
The Group Social ABCs model is currently being delivered as a research program in order to establish its efficacy. Based on informal preliminary analyses (with 35 families), the Group model appears to be demonstrating good levels of parent learning and toddler gains. This project will conclude in the fall of 2020, at which point formal analyses will be completed.
The Social ABCs program is not currently recruiting new participants, however, participation opportunities may arise in the future.
“Going Mobile”-increasing the reach of parent-mediated intervention for toddlers with ASD via group-based and virtual deliveryBrian, J., Solish, A., Dowds, E., Roth, I., Bernardi, K., Perry, K., Daoud, S., Jildera, S., MacWilliam, S., Smith, I. M., Zwaigenbaum, L., & Bryson, S. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 52, 5207-5220
Summary: In an effort to be resource efficient and allow families to connect, a new model of the Social ABCs was piloted, where parents could meet together to learn strategies and discuss experiences, and then still practice one-on-one with their child and a coach. Responding to the Covid-19 pandemic, this new ‘Group Social ABCs’ model transitioned to virtual delivery. In this study, the adaptions for the group model are presented, and the families who received in-person Social ABCs are compared the group that received the program virtually. Results show that caregivers achieved similar levels of implementation fidelity and children increased in target skill areas regardless of receiving the program virtually or in person, suggesting virtual care is a feasible and effective alternative to in-person service, with potential to reach more families and families is less accessible areas.
Effectiveness of a parent-mediated intervention for toddlers with autism spectrum disorder: Evidence from a large community implementationBrian, J., Solish, Drmic, I., Roncadin, C., Dowds, E., Shaver, C., Smith, I. M., Zwaigenbaum, L., Sacrey, L. A. R., & Bryson, S. E. Autism, 26(7)
Summary: Previous studies have used a rigorous research design (a randomized controlled trial) to show that Social ABCs can work under ideal well-controlled conditions. To build on this evidence, we also need to examine whether parent-mediated interventions can be taught as effectively through community service providers and delivered in more “real-world” conditions. This study describes the outcomes of a research-community partnership in Hamilton, Ontario which provided the Social ABCs program to 179 families. Analyses showed that parents learned the strategies that were designed to help them support their toddlers’ development. Also, toddlers made gains in their language, communication, and social skills. Importantly, parents’ use of the strategies was related to toddlers’ skill gains, suggesting that the use of the strategies made a difference for the toddlers. Findings suggest that caregiver-mediated programs like the Social ABCs should be made available for community delivery.
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