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Adapting Pivotal Response Treatment to Support the Families of High-Risk Infants

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Handbook of Parent-Implemented Interventions for Very Young Children with Autism

Part of the book series: Autism and Child Psychopathology Series ((ACPS))

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Abstract

Pivotal response treatment (PRT) is a comprehensive, evidence-based treatment model for individuals with autism spectrum disorder. This chapter will detail the development of PRT and introduce the basic behavioral and motivational strategies used to enhance social engagement, language, and play for young children with ASD. PRT has traditionally relied upon “parent training” or “parent education” as an integral component of intervention, and research studies focused on the parent-training components of PRT will be described. We also provide a rationale for earlier intervention to improve prognosis and enhance developmental gains for individuals with ASD. Thus, this chapter will address the justification and methods for adapting PRT for families of high-risk infants under 24 months of age and describe how a naturalistic, developmental, behavioral approach that targets social motivation is ideally suited for infant intervention. Preliminary research presented here suggests that the motivational strategies of PRT can be effective for improving social engagement and social communication for infants within the first two years of life.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Marcus Autism Center, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Jessica Bradshaw

  2. Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Jessica Bradshaw

  3. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, CA, USA

    Lynn Koegel

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  1. Jessica Bradshaw
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  2. Lynn Koegel
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Correspondence to Jessica Bradshaw .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Autism and Related Disorders, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

    Michael Siller

  2. Division of Autism and Related Disorders, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

    Lindee Morgan

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Bradshaw, J., Koegel, L. (2018). Adapting Pivotal Response Treatment to Support the Families of High-Risk Infants. In: Siller, M., Morgan, L. (eds) Handbook of Parent-Implemented Interventions for Very Young Children with Autism. Autism and Child Psychopathology Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-90994-3_4

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