Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 May;17(5):432-443.
doi: 10.30773/pi.2019.0229. Epub 2020 May 8.

Efficacy of Interventions Based on Applied Behavior Analysis for Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Meta-Analysis

Qian Yu  1 , Enyao Li  1 , Liguo Li  1 , Weiyi Liang  2
Affiliations

Efficacy of Interventions Based on Applied Behavior Analysis for Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Meta-Analysis

Qian Yu et al. Psychiatry Investig. 2020 May.

Abstract

Objective: To systematically evaluate evidence for the use of interventions based on appied behavior analysis (ABA) to manage various symptoms of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Methods: Sensitivity analyses were conducted by removing any outlying studies and subgroup analyses were performed to compare the effectiveness of ABA and early start denver model (ESDM), picture exchange communication systems (PECS) and discrete trial training (DTT).

Results: 14 randomized control trials of 555 participants were included in this meta-analysis. The overall standardized mean difference was d=-0.36 (95% CI -1.31, 0.58; Z=0.75, p=0.45) for autism general symptoms, d=0.11 (95% CI -0.31, 0.54; Z=0.52, p=0.60) for socialization, d=0.30 (95% CI -0.02, 0.61; Z=1.84, p=0.07) for communication and d=-3.52 (95% CI -6.31, -0.72; Z=2.47, p=0.01) for expressive language, d=-0.04 (95% CI -0.44, 0.36; Z=0.20, p=0.84) for receptive language. Those results suggested outcomes of socialization, communication and expressive language may be promising targets for ABA-based interventions involving children with ASD. However, significant effects for the outcomes of autism general symptoms, receptive language, adaptive behavior, daily living skills, IQ, verbal IQ, nenverbal IQ, restricted and repetitive behavior, motor and cognition were not observed.

Conclusion: The small number of studies included in the present study limited the ability to make inferences when comparing ABA, ESDM, PECS and DTT interventions for children with ASD.

Keywords: Applied behavior analysis; Autism; Children; Meta-analysis.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
PRISMA flow diagram of study selection.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Risk of bias within studies.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Forest plots.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. American Psychiatric Association . Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 5th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Publishing; 2013.
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Prevalence of autism spectrum disorder among children aged 8 years – Autism and developmental disabilities monitoring network, 11 sites, United States, 2014. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report Surveillance Summaries, April 27th, 2018. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Simonoff E, Pickles A, Charman T, Chandler S, Loucas T, Baird G. Psychiatric disorders in children with autism spectrum disorders: prevalence, comorbidity, and associated factors in a population-derived sample. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2008;47:921–929. - PubMed
    1. Maskey M, Warnell F, Parr JR, Le Couteur A, McConachie H. Emotional and behavioural problems in children with autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord. 2012;43:851–859. - PubMed
    1. Pearson DA, Loveland KA, Lachar D, Lane DM, Reddoch SL, Mansour R, et al. A comparison of behavioral and emotional functioning in children and adolescents with autistic disorder and PDD-NOS. Child Neuropsychol. 2006;12:321–333. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources