Social outcomes of a child with autism spectrum disorder after the SSP
The ability to regulate emotions is fundamental to healthy development and functioning in a multitude of domains, including social engagement. Yet many autistic people have difficulty with social engagement and emotional regulation.
The Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) is a practical and evidence-based intervention on which caregivers can effectively support their clients in building both skills.
A recently published study showed that the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP), in combination with other interventions, helped improve the social communication and behavioral skills of a 20-month-old child with moderate autism spectrum disorder (ASD) (Squillace, Lopez & Cohn, 2022).
In this single-subject multi-baseline design study published in the Journal of Occupational Therapy, Schools, & Early Intervention, the SSP was delivered 30 minutes a day for 10 days and, after an eight weeks, the SSP was used again for another 16 days. Improvements were found in language, listening, processing facial expressions, emotional regulation, and some behaviors such as social interactions, transitions sleep and play. These improvements persisted at follow-up three months after completion of the entire program.
In addition to the significant client successes in this study, there are some key learning points that may be relevant to SSP providers - and those potentially interested in certification - who work with people of different ages and with varied client populations:
- The caregiver was significantly involved in the delivery.
- In this case, the caregiver was a parent and although they had to be involved due to the nature of the research design, it is worth noting what value the caregiver brought to the SSP experience and the client's success.
- The caregiver reported on the client's functioning before, during and after delivery of the SSP.
- In this way, the caregiver could consult observations from the home situation. Although the researcher cites parental bias as a limitation of the study, parental reporting indicates what often happens: caregivers integrate caregiver reports with their own observations, which helps to reduce bias and improve reliability of interventions.
- The client was closely monitored.
- In this case, the caregiver met with the caregiver after each session to discuss observations, as well as at weekly caregiver-only meetings. Although this high level of monitoring was likely for the study and may not be as high for some less complex clients, this approach to monitoring (consistent communication between caregiver and caregiver) supports decision-making around delivery of future sessions.
- Psychoeducation to support client and caregiver readiness for SSP delivery. In this case, the provider met with the client and caregiver in person for one session before delivery began and incorporated feedback throughout the program. This helped prepare the client for delivery and ultimately supported better outcomes. Other research has shown that psychoeducation that includes feedback to caregivers, especially when it refers to social behaviors, is strongly associated with better outcomes (Chikersol et. al, 2020).
This new research not only shows improvements in social function as a result of the SSP, but also provides insight into the role caregiver involvement (coregulation) can play in supporting positive outcomes of SSP delivery for each client.
Read the original on Unyte's site here.
