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Meta-Analysis
. 2020 May;50(5):1683-1700.
doi: 10.1007/s10803-019-03927-z.

The Effects of Early Intervention on Social Communication Outcomes for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Meta-analysis

Elizabeth A Fuller  1 , Ann P Kaiser  2
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

The Effects of Early Intervention on Social Communication Outcomes for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Meta-analysis

Elizabeth A Fuller et al. J Autism Dev Disord. 2020 May.

Abstract

This meta-analysis examined the effects of early interventions on social communication outcomes for young children with autism spectrum disorder. A systematic review of the literature included 1442 children (mean age 3.55 years) across 29 studies. The overall effect size of intervention on social communication outcomes was significant (g = 0.36). The age of the participants was related to the treatment effect size on social communication outcomes, with maximum benefits occurring at age 3.81 years. Results did not differ significantly depending on the person implementing the intervention. However, significantly larger effect sizes were observed in studies with context-bound outcome measures. The findings of this meta-analysis highlight the need for further research examining specific components of interventions associated with greater and more generalized gains.

Keywords: Autism spectrum disorders; Early intervention; Meta-analysis; Social communication.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
PRISMA description of exclusion process. The process of screening and excluding articles is explained
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Main effect of intervention on social communication outcomes. Random effect meta-regression of social communication outcomes from 29 included studies. Weighted effect sizes of included studies are represented by black boxes and standard errors are represented by black bars. Hedges’ g effect sizes and confidence intervals are reported
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Bubble plot of meta regression outcomes for the quadratic relationship between age and effect size. Size of the circle represents the studies’ relative weight in the random effects model
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Subgroup analysis of social communication outcomes by person implementing the intervention. Diamonds represent the aggregated effect size of each subgroup using a fixed effect meta-analysis. Hedges’ g effect sizes and confidence intervals are reported. Nonsignificant heterogeneity between groups (p = 0.190) indicates no significant different results dependent on implementer
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Subgroup analysis of social communication outcomes by measurement type. Diamonds represent the aggregated effect size of each subgroup using a fixed effect meta-analysis. Hedges’ g effect sizes and confidence intervals are reported. Significant heterogeneity between groups (p = 0.007) indicates significant different results dependent on measurement type
Fig. 6
Fig. 6
Funnel plot of included studies: effect size and standard error
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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