Emerging research shows that Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) may improve mental health for caregivers. Parents of autistic children, adolescents, and adults (N = 54) were randomly assigned to either complete a brief group-based ACT intervention or remain on the waitlist. Participants completed surveys immediately prior to randomization,…

UK Sure Start Children's Centres (SSCCs) aim to lessen behavioural disorders yet we lack evidence concerning how this is achieved. This study evaluates one possible mechanism: improved home learning environments (HLEs). Data come from a longitudinal study of 2568 families and children recruited at a mean age of 14 months from 117 SSCCs in England…

Purpose: Caregivers of autistic children present with high stress levels, which have been associated with poorer child outcomes in several domains, including language development. However, prior to this study, it was unknown whether elevated caregiver stress was associated with language development in infant siblings of autistic children…

This study presents the findings of a quasi-experimental feasibility study examining the Tertiary First Step intervention, an enhanced version of the First Step to Success early intervention program. Tertiary FirstStep was developed to engage families more effectively and influence and improve parenting practices for children having challenging…

This study presents the findings of a quasi-experimental feasibility study examining the Tertiary First Step intervention, an enhanced version of the First Step to Success early intervention program. Tertiary First Step was developed to engage families more effectively and influence and improve parenting practices for children having challenging…

The purpose of this study was to assess changes in children's language skills and parenting stress following participation in the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program (PCMGP). The intervention group consisted of 29 parents (age range 24 to 43 years, "M" = 33.5, SD = 4.1) and 30 children (18 females and 12 males) with ages ranging from 1 to…

Dimensions of family-school partnerships, including parent-teacher relationship quality and family educational involvement, are associated with positive outcomes for youth. Family-school partnerships are important for autistic youth, who may particularly benefit from cross-setting supports. Coordinated family-school partnerships may help maximize…

Being school-ready when transitioning to the primary school system has been associated with favourable outcomes during schooling and adult life. While children living in socio-economically disadvantaged areas may be at a higher risk of being less school-ready, research in the area has highlighted that not all children experience such a delay. This…

Background: The research carried out in the last years outlined that childbirth could be considered as a sufficient stressor for the insurgence of posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms with important consequences for the child care. Objectives: In a longitudinal perspective, this study focused on PTS symptoms after childbirth to understand their…

The mechanisms by which high quality, two-generation early childhood services promote healthy child development remain unclear. This research examined how participation in Early Head Start (EHS), a U.S. two-generation programme for children under 3, was associated with healthy child development to age 5 through parenting processes. Using four time…

Emotion dysregulation (ED) underlies psychiatric symptoms and impedes adaptive responses in autistic individuals. The Emotion Awareness and Skills Enhancement (EASE) program was the first mindfulness-based intervention designed to target emotion dysregulation in autistic adolescents (12-17 years old). This project partnered with stakeholders to…

This study identified differences in sources of stress between parents of male children with intellectual disabilities in Saudi Arabia. Seventeen pairs of parents completed the Parent Stress Index (Abidin, 1995). Each pair of parents had a male child diagnosed with intellectual disability who either attended an institute for male children with…

A reliable autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis can occur as early as 18 months; however, the average age at diagnosis in the United States is over 2 years later. While there are numerous well-known barriers to seeking an ASD diagnosis, no research has examined if separation between a child's biological parents affects timing of ASD diagnosis…

Research Findings: Marginal food security is less studied relative to food insecurity but may also have adverse effects on family outcomes. The present study examined whether parental stress mediated the relationship between marginal food security (MFS) and preschool-aged children's observed self-regulation at three early education centers located…

Being in a caregiver role for a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) brings a unique set of stressors and challenges to the entire family unit. This study examined a model hypothesizing that (a) parenting stress and the parenting style used by the parents of a child with ASD are correlated; (b) ASD severity, parenting stress, and parenting…