Incredible Years Program for Parents of Children with Autism (IY-ASD)

November 22, 2024 updated by: Sarah Dababnah, University of Maryland, Baltimore

Evaluation of Incredible Years Parenting Program for Caregivers of Children with Autism

Early intervention for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), particularly with parent involvement, is beneficial for both children and their families. However, few interventions have been rigorously tested which explicitly address parent and family outcomes. This study will test the effectiveness of "The Incredible Years Parent Program for Autism Spectrum and Language Delays" (IY-ASD) program for parents of children with ASD ages 2-8 in a community-based setting, compared to a parent support program, "Circle of Parents." The investigators will assess parent stress, caregiver coping, child behavior, parenting practices of participants. In addition, the investigators will report on participants' satisfaction with IY-ASD, through parent interviews and satisfaction surveys.

Study Overview

Status

Terminated

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

"The Incredible Years" refers to a suite of developmentally appropriate, group-based interventions targeting parenting, children, and teachers. IY-ASD is an adapted version of the Basic parent training program, which uses a simple and low-cost format to develop skills in problem-solving coping, stress management, and communication. "The Incredible Years" has decades of evidence pointing to improved levels of parent stress, depression, and coping skills, as well as decreased negative child outcomes such as aggressive behavior in a broad array of diverse populations. The program has been used extensively in the United Kingdom and Sweden. Cost-effectiveness analyses have been performed with positive results in England. "The Incredible Years" is based on attachment theory and social learning theory.The goals of "The Incredible Years" parent intervention - communication, problem-solving, and stress management - are critically important to this population. Parents with children with special needs tend to interact with teachers, healthcare professionals, and other adults more often than parents whose children do not have disabilities. Thus, building a strong foundation early to begin to problem solve, communicate effectively, and navigate healthcare and special education systems can reduce some stress the parent might experience in the future.

The Incredible Years Parent Program for Autism Spectrum and Language Delays (IY-ASD). IY-ASD will be delivered over a 14-week period. The current research aims to rigorously test IY-ASD in a community-based setting using a randomized design. The investigators will compare IY-ASD to a usual practice, a parent support group currently offered at Onslow County Partnership for Children, "Circle of Parents." "Circle of Parents" is an open group which is led by a parent leader. These groups generally meet weekly or biweekly. Participants are encouraged to share resources and other support both during groups, and between meetings. Free childcare and meals are also offered during "Circle of Parents" meetings. Using a randomized design, the investigators will evaluate a parent intervention for caregivers of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), compared to a parent support group. Over a four-year period, the investigators seek to:

  1. Recruit approximately 105 parents and other primary caregivers to participate in either an IY-ASD or "Circle of Parents" group;
  2. Measure parenting stress, parent coping mechanisms, parenting practices, and child behavior of participants and their children, at baseline and posttest (pre- and post-intervention);
  3. Compare outcomes of parents completing IY-ASD versus those in "Circle of Parents" group;
  4. Evaluate changes in parent and child outcomes from post-intervention to 3-month follow-up in IY-ASD participants; and,
  5. Elicit information from IY-ASD participants to assess satisfaction and improve future use of IY-ASD in the ASD population.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

27

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • North Carolina
      • Jacksonville, North Carolina, United States, 28546
        • Onslow County Partnership for Children

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Parent or primary caregiver of a child ages 2 to 8 with an autism spectrum disorder
  • Must live in Onslow County or surrounding county

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Parent is younger than 18 years old

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Incredible Years - ASD
The intervention, The Incredible Years Parent Program for Autism Spectrum and Language Delays (IY-ASD; more information is here: http://www.incredibleyears.com/programs/parent/autism-spectrum-language-delays/) is a 14-week course that meets for 2 hours every week. Ideally, an IY-ASD group will be composed of approximately 10 parents and other primary caregivers of children who have autism.
Behavioral: Incredible Years - ASD
The IY-ASD intervention is designed for parents of children with autism spectrum disorder. The programs uses a mix of videos, collaborative brainstorming sessions, and role plays to deliver content on child-directed play and positive discipline practices.
Other Names:
  • Incredible Years
Active Comparator: Circle of Parents
"Circle of Parents," the comparison condition, is an open parent support group led by a parent leader. (For more information, see http://circleofparents.org/). Participants are encouraged to share resources and other support both during groups, and between meetings.
Other: Circle of Parents
"Circle of Parents" is an open parent support group led by a parent leader. Participants are encouraged to share resources and other support both during groups, and between meetings.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in child behavior
Time Frame: Change from baseline at 14 weeks and at 3 months
Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory (ECBI) - This measure includes 36 items that assess typical problems reported by parents of conduct-disordered children. Items are rated on intensity and problem scales; the two subscales are combined for a composite score.
Change from baseline at 14 weeks and at 3 months
Change in parent stress
Time Frame: Change from baseline at 14 weeks and at 3 months
Parenting Stress Index-Short Form (PSI-SF) - The PSI Short Form (PSI/SF) is a direct derivative of the Parenting Stress Index (PSI) full-length test. All 36 items on the Short Form are contained on the Long Form with identical wording and are written at a 5th-grade reading level, for parents of children 12 years and younger. The PSI/SF yields a Total Stress score from three scales: Parental Distress, Parent-Child Dysfunctional Interaction, and Difficult Child.
Change from baseline at 14 weeks and at 3 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in coping mechanisms
Time Frame: Change from baseline at 14 weeks and at 3 months
Brief COPE - This measures assesses several types of coping mechanisms used to address stress.
Change from baseline at 14 weeks and at 3 months
Change in parenting practices
Time Frame: Change from baseline at 14 weeks and at 3 months
Parent Practices Inventory (PPI) - This questionnaire was adapted from the Oregon Social Learning Center's (OSLC) discipline questionnaire and revised for young children. There are 72 items assessing various subscales of parenting behavior.
Change from baseline at 14 weeks and at 3 months
Change in depression, anxiety, and stress
Time Frame: Change from baseline at 14 weeks and at 3 months

The Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21 Items (DASS-21) is a set of three self-report scales designed to measure the emotional states of depression, anxiety and stress.

Each of the three DASS-21 scales contains 7 items, divided into subscales with similar content.
Change from baseline at 14 weeks and at 3 months
Satisfaction survey
Time Frame: At treatment completion (approximately 14 weeks after baseline)
This survey was developed for the Incredible Years and can be found in the Incredible Years manual. It is not standardized.
At treatment completion (approximately 14 weeks after baseline)
Weekly IY-ASD evaluation
Time Frame: Weekly throughout treatment (14 weeks total)
This survey was developed for the Incredible Years and can be found in the Incredible Years manual. It is not standardized.
Weekly throughout treatment (14 weeks total)

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

University of Maryland, Baltimore

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Sarah Dababnah, PhD, School of Social Work University of Maryland, Baltimore

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

June 1, 2017

Primary Completion (Actual)

May 31, 2018

Study Completion (Actual)

December 10, 2018

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

September 22, 2017

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 27, 2017

First Posted (Actual)

October 3, 2017

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

November 26, 2024

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 22, 2024

Last Verified

December 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • HP-00074617

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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