Telehealth Parenting Intervention & Therapist Coaching Improved Behavior In Young Children With DD

An internet-delivered parent-child interaction therapy (iPCIT), paired with therapist coaching, significantly improves behavior in young children with developmental disabilities (DD), according to findings from a recent randomized clinical trial.

Children with DD and externalizing behavior problems were recruited from early intervention programs and randomly assigned to either the iPCIT telehealth parenting intervention or control group who received treatment as usual (TAU). For iPCIT, therapists used videoconferencing to observe families interacting at home and provided real-time coaching. In their weekly sessions, parents/caregivers learned how to praise child behavior, utilize effective commands, ignore undesirable behaviors, and apply time . . .