Effects of Peer Support Interventions on the Communication of Preschoolers with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Many young children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) experience difficulty in the development of communication skills. Teaching peers to make use of communication support behaviors has been investigated as a strategy to increase communication for young children with ASD in early childhood settings. The purpose of this systematic review was to examine (1) the overall effects of peer support interventions on the communication of young children with ASD and (2) any possible moderating variables related to participant and intervention characteristics. The social support model was used as a framework for the study of intervention components. Eighteen single-case experimental design studies (48 children with ASD) met the inclusion criteria and were advanced to the full coding and analysis phase of the investigation. Descriptive analyses and effect size estimations using the improvement rate difference (IRD) metric were conducted. Overall, peer support interventions were found to be effective across a range of young children with ASD and intervention approaches. Evidence was also identified for the use of the social support model as a framework to guide the development of peer interventions in early childhood settings. The use of friendship groups, the selection of play materials based on the interests of the child with ASD, and the provision of augmentative and alternative communication appeared to be associated with positive communication outcomes.

For autistic persons by autistic persons: Acceptability of a structured peer support service according to key stakeholders

“…Efforts to integrate peer helpers into the healthcare system are underway in several areas 18,19 . In autism, peer support interventions have been proposed in the school setting as a way to promote the development of social skills and academic engagement, rather than for the benefit of social support as such 20–23 . These programmes, mainly consist of neurotypical students offering support to autistic persons, rather than autistic persons supporting autistic persons.…”

Stakeholder Perceptions of the Acceptability of Peer-Mediated Intervention for Minimally Speaking Preschoolers on the Autism Spectrum

“…PMI involves selecting peers close in age, and training and supporting them to interact with a child on the autism spectrum (Odom & Strain, 1984 ). Several reviews have concluded that PMI promotes social interaction between children on the autism spectrum and their peers (Chan et al, 2009 ; Ledford & Pustejovsky, 2021 ), including reviews focusing on group studies (Chang & Locke, 2016 ), preschool age children (Chapin et al, 2018 ), inclusive preschool settings (Watkins et al, 2015 ), and children with autism who are minimally speaking (O’Donoghue et al, 2021 ). O’Donoghue et al ( 2021 ) identified twelve single case experimental design studies that used PMI and were conducted with minimally speaking preschoolers on the autism spectrum ( n = 28) and their typically developing peers ( n = 60).…”

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Stay-Play-Talk Interventions for Improving Social Behaviors of Young Children

“…Several recent reviews have evaluated the extent of evidence for PMIs (Chan et al, 2009; Chapin et al, 2018; Watkins et al, 2015). These reviews identified that PMIs often included modeling, prompting, and reinforcement and that they were generally effective for improving communication and social behaviors for children with autism.…”