Effectiveness of a Parent-mediated Intervention With PACT on Children With ASD

Change between baseline and 12 months in the overall raw score at ADOS-2 (Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule version 2), Module 1

Social Interactions measured with the total score of the BOSCC (Brief Observation of Social Communication Change).

The test contains 9 items that are meant to capture the quality of a child's social interaction, for which the total scores ranges from 0 to 45, and 3 items describing restricted a repetitive behavior, which is also part of the ASD symptomatology, the total score of which ranges from 0 to 15. Three additional items are coded to add information on symptoms that might be present although they are not specifically part of the ASD syndrome, and refer to activity level, disruptive behavior, and anxious behaviors. The BOSCC total score consists in the sum of the total score obtained in the first twelve items (ASD specific symptoms), and ranges from 0 to 60, with the three extra items added separately to integrate information. In the total and subscale scores, higher scores correspond to more severe symptoms.

Parent-child synchrony and initiative in communication measure with DCMA (Dyadic Communication Measure for autism)

Number of words produced by the child measured with global score of the french scale " Développement du Langage de Production en Français " (DLPF)

Number of words produced by the child measured with global score of the Mullen Scale of early learning (MSEL)

Adaptative behavior measured with VABS (Vineland Adaptative Behaviour Scales 2).

The Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (VABS; Sparrow et al., 1984) comprises four domains, that is, communication, daily living skills, socialization and motor skills, for assessing adaptive functioning in children aged 3 to 12 years old. The raw score in each domain and total raw score are converted to an age-equivalent score. The domain scores are also expressed as standard scores with a mean of 100 and standard deviation of 15. The range for each subscale is from 20 to 140. The subscales are summed to compute a total score, ranging from 80 to 560. The higher the scores are, the better adaptive functioning the children achieve.

Measured with the questionnaire Autism Family Experience. The Autism Family Experience Questionnaire (AFEQ) is a parent/Caregiver form used to measure impact of autism interventions on family experience and quality of life. The AFEQ included both positively and negatively worded statements and is scored on an order scale: 1 = always to 5 = never, with an option for "Not Applicable". 4 domains are evaluated : experience of being a parent, family life, child development understanding and social relationships, child symptoms.A higher score means a worse outcome.

Measured with General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28). The GHQ-28 is a 28-item self-report used to psychological stress. The GHQ focuses on two main classes of phenomena: 1) inability to carry out one's normal healthy functions; and 2) emergence of new phenomena that are distressing.

It consists of 28 items, divided into 4 sub-scales. It contains 4 sub-scales: A (somatic symptoms), B (anxiety/insomnia), C (social dysfunction), and D (severe depression). There are 4 possible answers to each question. The Likert scoring system assigns a value from 0 to 3 to each of the 4 possible answers. A higher score means a worse outcome.

Measured with ISP (Indice of Parental Stress). A self-report inventory designed to measure the overall level of parenting stress an individual is experiencing and it examine stressors associated specifically with the parental role and do not include stresses associated with other life roles and events. The PSI-SR has strong psychometric properties and has been used in a number of studies of autism and parent training. It contains 36 items, each rated on a five-point Likert scale (1-5), with higher scores indicative of more parenting stress and includes Parental Distress (PD), Parent-Child Dysfunctional Interaction (P-CDI) and Difficult Child (DC) sub-scales.