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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Autism
Volume 15 - 2024 |
doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1401148
This article is part of the Research Topic Autism Spectrum Disorders: Developmental Trajectories, Neurobiological Basis, Treatment Update, Volume III View all 4 articles
Telehealth Regulating Together Pilot Trial: Emotion Regulation Intervention for Autistic Children and Adolescents
Provisionally accepted- 1 Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States
- 2 Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
- 3 College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
Introduction: Autistic children and adolescents frequently experience emotion dysregulation, or difficulties with appropriately modifying their emotional reactions. Caregivers of autistic teens frequently seek psychotherapy support for navigating challenges associated with emotion dysregulation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, access to clinical services became limited, with interventions halted or transitioned into a telehealth format. Methods: This study evaluates the feasibility, acceptability, and initial efficacy of a telehealth adaptation to an existing intervention for emotion dysregulation for children and teens with autism, Regulating Together. A within-subjects trial was conducted for Child (ages 8-12) and Teen groups (ages 13-18). The trial consisted of a 5-week-control lead-in period, a 5-week-intervention, and 5-and 10-weeks-post-intervention follow-ups. Results: Twenty-eight youth with ASD + ED (n=13 Child and n=15 Teens, 71% male) participated. We observed a 93% retention rate across both groups. Improvements were found in reactivity, irritability, emotion and behavioral regulation, and flexibility immediately post-intervention and 10-weeks post-intervention in both groups. Additional improvements in dysphoria, cognitive regulation, and emotional control were observed in teens. Discussion: Our results suggest promising improvements in ED through telehealth delivery of an emotion regulation intervention in autistic children and adolescents, along with possible improvements in accessibility of this intervention.
Keywords: autism, Emotion Regulation, Children, adolescents, telehealth
Received: 14 Mar 2024; Accepted: 03 Sep 2024.
Copyright: © 2024 Coffman, Wells, Schmitt, Reisinger, Horn and Shaffer. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Rebecca Shaffer, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, 45229, Ohio, United States
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