Early Intensive Behavior Intervention - Effectiveness

Effectiveness

Over 500 articles have been published showing the effectiveness of Lovaas technique for children with autism. Effectiveness questions appear to arise around specific claims of recovery from autism based on the intervention.

Lovaas was developed based on research performed by Lovaas and his assistants. This research reported that 47% of those children that had received an average of 40 hours of intensive therapy were mainstreamed into regular classrooms, and were classified as "indistinguishable" from their peers in follow-up studies. Although subsequent studies have shown that intensive behavioral therapy clearly benefited children with autism, it has been claimed that Lovaas's original claims of effectiveness were overstated. A 2005 California study found that early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI), the Lovaas technique used for very young children, was substantially more effective for preschool children with autism than the mixture of methods provided in many programs; this study did not use random assignment or a uniform assessment protocol, and provided limited information about the intervention, making it difficult to replicate.

Smith et al. (2002) performed a preliminary study of nine high-functioning autistic children, all of whom were previous recipients of early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI), of ages five to seven in free play settings. The purpose was to assess the effects of EIBI on solitary activities, ritualistic behaviors, and social activity when exposed to the two experimental groups. Each child participated in four, one hour sessions consisting of 15 minute periods of play with either a typically developing peer or a lower functioning autistic child with major deficits in pragmatic communication, social interaction and self-care. Children had never met prior. The period of play began with 15 minutes of play with either the typically developed (TD) peer or the developmentally disabled (DD) peer and alternated accordingly in one of two variations: TD-DD-TD-DD or DD-TD-DD-TD. Observers rated play on five criterion: i. interactive toy play, ii. interactive speech, iii. solitary toy play, iv. solitary speech, and v. self-stimulation. Data showed the high-functioning children displayed significantly more instances of interactive play and interactive speech when paired with the typically developed.

The Lovaas technique is best generalized when paired with natural settings, and the implementation is clearly structured. A good sense of direction is needed when planning for intervention. Although this is one approach, many children with autism spectrum disorder learn differently and this needs to be taken into account to ensure the Lovaas approach is effective for all. For some children it is shown that typical peer interaction can increase an autistic child's chances of leading a normal life. Lovaas techniques are cost effective for administrators.