Selecting treatments for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

[b***@gmail.com]

Are you a parent of a child with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)?

We are conducting an online survey to learn what helps parents select the best treatments for their children with ASD. The survey takes approximately 20 minutes and you will have the option of being in a draw for one of ten $20 gift certificates to Amazon.com/ca.

Who can participate?
Parents and/or guardians of children (aged 21 and under) who have been diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder.

What will I be asked to do?
Go online and complete a questionnaire. All information is confidential. You can choose to no longer participate at any time prior to submitting your questionnaire.

When can I participate?
Whenever is most convenient for you! Simply click on the link below and follow the instructions provided:

http://uwindsor.fluidsurveys.com/surveys/bdrouill/parent-factors-and-treatment-selection-in-asd/

Primary Investigator: Brianne Drouillard, B.A., M.A. Candidate,
University of Windsor
Email: ***@uwindsor.ca

Supervisor: Marcia Gragg, Ph.D., C.Psych.,
University of Windsor
Email: ***@uwindsor.ca

[Bob Badour]

Post by b***@gmail.com
Are you a parent of a child with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)?
We are conducting an online survey to learn what helps parents select the best treatments for their children with ASD. The survey takes approximately 20 minutes and you will have the option of being in a draw for one of ten $20 gift certificates to Amazon.com/ca.
Who can participate?
Parents and/or guardians of children (aged 21 and under) who have been diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder.
What will I be asked to do?
Go online and complete a questionnaire. All information is confidential. You can choose to no longer participate at any time prior to submitting your questionnaire.
When can I participate?
http://uwindsor.fluidsurveys.com/surveys/bdrouill/parent-factors-and-treatment-selection-in-asd/
Primary Investigator: Brianne Drouillard, B.A., M.A. Candidate,
University of Windsor
Supervisor: Marcia Gragg, Ph.D., C.Psych.,
University of Windsor

What is your criteria for "best treatment" ?

[Aquarian Monkey]

Post by Bob Badour
What is your criteria for "best treatment" ?

Bob, the description of the survey is a bit misleading. I took it and it does not measure "best" at all, but appears to be trying to correlate parental beliefs to the types of treatment they select.

I found the survey a bit confusing in parts of it. For example, when looking at various symptomatology, it said something along the lines of "has your child exhibited this since being diagnosed" I find that confusing. Because if they mean *ever* since being diagnosed, my answer would have often been no. But if they meant *at any time* since being diagnosed, my answer was yes to all but one or two items. I assumed they meant *at any time,* and answered it that way. But if they meant *ever* since, then D will present as much more severe than she really is.

After I took the survey, I got a page with this information:

Title of study: It’s all in how you see it: Predicting parents’ treatment selection for their children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

You participated in a study by Brianne E. Drouillard, B.A. (Hons.) from the Psychology Department at the University of Windsor. This study is part of her Master’s degree in Child Clinical Psychology.

Dr. Marcia Gragg, Ph.D., C. Psych., is supervising the study. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact Dr. Gragg at ***@uwindsor.ca or Brianne at ***@uwindsor.ca.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION

• With the widespread use of unsupported treatments for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), it is important to identify factors associated with selection of these treatments that may be possible to change.

• Two of the most challenging tasks for parents of recently diagnosed children are developing an understanding of ASD and accepting the diagnosis of ASD. • The purpose of the present study is to identify the relations between nine aspects of parents’ understandings of ASD, their acceptance of their children’s ASD, and their treatment selection for their children.

EXPECTED FINDINGS OF THE STUDY

a) Parents with stronger beliefs in the severity of ASD and its impact on various aspects of their child’s functioning will be more likely to select behavioural treatments for their children;

b) Parents with stronger beliefs in a cyclical course of ASD will be more likely to select drug-based treatments for their children;

c) Parents with stronger beliefs in their personal control over their child’s ASD will be less likely to select drug-based, diet-based, and vitamin-based treatments for their children;

d) Parents with stronger beliefs in external causes of their child’s ASD (e.g., vaccines, pollution) will be more likely to select diet-based and vitamin-based treatments for their children;

e) Parents with more negative emotional reactions to their child’s diagnosis of ASD will be less likely to select behavioural treatments for their children;

f) Parents with higher levels of acceptance of their child’s ASD will be more likely to select supported treatments for their children; and

g) Parents with lower levels of acceptance of their child’s ASD will be more likely to select unsupported treatments for their children.

FEEDBACK OF THE RESULTS OF THE STUDY TO THE PARTICIPANTS

A brief summary of the results of the research will be available by February 1, 2013 and will be posted online at www.uwindsor.ca/autism (click on ‘Student Research’ and ‘Brianne Drouillard’).

[Bob Badour]

Post by Aquarian Monkey

Post by Bob Badour
What is your criteria for "best treatment" ?

Bob, the description of the survey is a bit misleading. I took it and it does not measure "best" at all, but appears to be trying to correlate parental beliefs to the types of treatment they select.
I found the survey a bit confusing in parts of it. For example, when looking at various symptomatology, it said something along the lines of "has your child exhibited this since being diagnosed" I find that confusing. Because if they mean *ever* since being diagnosed, my answer would have often been no. But if they meant *at any time* since being diagnosed, my answer was yes to all but one or two items. I assumed they meant *at any time,* and answered it that way. But if they meant *ever* since, then D will present as much more severe than she really is.
Title of study: It’s all in how you see it: Predicting parents’ treatment selection for their children with Autism Spectrum Disorders
You participated in a study by Brianne E. Drouillard, B.A. (Hons.) from the Psychology Department at the University of Windsor. This study is part of her Master’s degree in Child Clinical Psychology.
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION
• With the widespread use of unsupported treatments for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), it is important to identify factors associated with selection of these treatments that may be possible to change.
• Two of the most challenging tasks for parents of recently diagnosed children are developing an understanding of ASD and accepting the diagnosis of ASD. • The purpose of the present study is to identify the relations between nine aspects of parents’ understandings of ASD, their acceptance of their children’s ASD, and their treatment selection for their children.
EXPECTED FINDINGS OF THE STUDY
a) Parents with stronger beliefs in the severity of ASD and its impact on various aspects of their child’s functioning will be more likely to select behavioural treatments for their children;
b) Parents with stronger beliefs in a cyclical course of ASD will be more likely to select drug-based treatments for their children;
c) Parents with stronger beliefs in their personal control over their child’s ASD will be less likely to select drug-based, diet-based, and vitamin-based treatments for their children;
d) Parents with stronger beliefs in external causes of their child’s ASD (e.g., vaccines, pollution) will be more likely to select diet-based and vitamin-based treatments for their children;
e) Parents with more negative emotional reactions to their child’s diagnosis of ASD will be less likely to select behavioural treatments for their children;
f) Parents with higher levels of acceptance of their child’s ASD will be more likely to select supported treatments for their children; and
g) Parents with lower levels of acceptance of their child’s ASD will be more likely to select unsupported treatments for their children.
FEEDBACK OF THE RESULTS OF THE STUDY TO THE PARTICIPANTS
A brief summary of the results of the research will be available by February 1, 2013 and will be posted online at www.uwindsor.ca/autism (click on ‘Student Research’ and ‘Brianne Drouillard’).

Oh, excellent! So, it's really a study of parents and how to get them to
choose ethical treatments.

[Aquarian Monkey]

Post by Bob Badour
Oh, excellent! So, it's really a study of parents and how to get them to
choose ethical treatments.

Well, I suppose that depends upon how one defines "ethical."

I see from the professor's website that she is a behaviorist. And when "professionals" refer to "supported" interventions, I generally read that to be ABA, since many other interventions do not yet have the research to "support" them, even though they might actually help people.

Now, I personally think ABA has come along way and D experienced some success with it, but I know many question how "ethical" ABA is for autistics. So, if the professor is of the underlying mindset that ABA is the best answer for all autistics, I don't know how it will matter *what* the research says. Unless she is going to use the results to try to manipulate parents to use ABA or another behavioral approach. But I would not equate that with "ethical."

I am also curious about the hypotheses and what their underlying thinking is.

Re: hypothesis a...I do not follow the logic in this, as I think how parents choose to intervene is highly associated with what they perceive to be the "cause" of their kids issues, not how severely they view them. And for many, it is highly influenced by the first professional they come into contact with, or the first book they read that made them feel hopeful and good.

Re: hypothesis b...Makes no sense to me. Most meds require continual administration, so I don't know why any logical person would choose to continually introduce chemicals to their kid's system when the problem itself is cyclical.

Re: hypothesis c...I think parents with higher levels of perceived personal control will be less likely to use formal interventions of any type since they perceive themselves as being in control. However, the items on the survey may make any of this difficult to figure out because if I remember correctly, because of the way they were worded, I responded positively to items assessing my feelings of control, but it isn't because I think I have any direct control over my kids' neurology at all. But I do have control over the choices I make and the choices I make on a daily basis tend to make their day go better or worse, depending if my choices were wise ones or not.

Re: hypothesis d...first one that makes sense to me. If you feel your kid is toxic or has been poisoned, of course you will utilize biomed.

Re: hypothesis e...From my personal experience, it seems to me that the parents who have the most negative emotional reactions are the exact same parents who are most likely to go the ABA route. They want strict control and they want it now. They want their kid to look and act "normal" and do not necessarily stop to think about the consequences of obtaining that wish.

Re: hypothesis f...if by "supported" she means ABA, I'd have to disagree. I find that people with higher levels of acceptance are more likely to use something like RDI or an eclectic model of whatever seems to work best for their kids. I'd have to say that that's what I've always done...tried a variety of things and stuck with whatever seemed to be helping and abandoning whatever didn't work. But even the things that have "worked" I have not used in their "pure" form. I adapt to suit my kids. I don't know if you'd find many people with a higher level of acceptance than me. I don't mean to be tooting my own horn. And I do think those of you who know me would probably agree. And I would have *never* used straight, unmodified ABA. I'm not even talking about the use of aversives here. The degree to which many people who follow ABA are rigid and fixated on things like discrete trials, and insisting on eye contact, and "quiet hands" and all of the stuff like that seems insane to me. I would have never subjected either kid to that. But I have used behavioral principals to teach both of them. And I have used behavioral analysis.

Re: hypothesis g...I do not know what she means by "unsupported." If she means things like having your kids soak in mud from some special spot in some remote part of some foreign country, then yes...it may be true. But if she means "everything but ABA" then I don't know how she's come to that conclusion.

I will check in February to get the results. Maybe there is logic to their hypotheses that I'm just failing to see.