Abstract
The Parent-Implemented Communication Strategies (PiCS) project resulted in the development of an intervention package aimed at enhancing the social communication skills of young children with disabilities and limited expressive language. While the outcomes of the PiCS project seem to be positive, a thorough and comprehensive assessment of social validity was warranted. Wolf (Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 11, 203–214, 1978) contended that interventions should be assessed not only for effectiveness but also for social validity. This study of social validity addressed the question, “Was the PiCS project socially valid from an expert perspective?” Our expert evaluators were recruited from three groups: (a) parents of young children with disabilities, (b) early childhood special education teachers, and (c) speech language pathologists who worked with young children with disabilities. Each evaluator viewed video clips of parent–child interactions from pre- and post-intervention sessions, in random order, and completed a questionnaire about parent and child behaviors. The overall findings provided support for the social validity of the PiCS project. Further discussion that examines differences in the ratings of the groups of evaluators and implications for research and practice is provided.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bruder, M. B. (2010). Early childhood intervention: a promise to children and families for their future. Exceptional Children, 76, 339–355.
Dunlap, G., Ester, T., Langhans, S., & Fox, L. (2006). Functional communication training with toddlers in home environments. Journal of Early Intervention, 28, 81–96.
Foster, S. L., & Mash, E. J. (1999). Assessing social validity in clinical treatment research: issues and procedures. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 67, 308–319.
Halle, J. W. (1982). Teaching functional language to the handicapped: an integrative model of natural environment teaching techniques. Journal of the Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps, 7, 29–37.
Hancock, T. B., & Kaiser, A. P. (2006). Enhanced milieu teaching. In R. McCauley & M. Fey (Eds.), Treatment of language disorders in children (pp. 203–236). Baltimore: Brookes.
Hart, B. (1985). Naturalistic language training techniques. In S. F. Warren & A. K. Rogers-Warren (Eds.), Teaching functional language (pp. 63–88). Austin: Pro-Ed.
Hart, B., & Risley, T. (1975). Incidental teaching of language in the preschool. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 8, 411–420. doi:10.1901/jaba.1975.8-411.
Hemmeter, M. L., & Kaiser, A. P. (1994). Enhanced milieu teaching: effects of parent-implemented language intervention. Journal of Early Intervention, 18(3), 269–289.
Kashinath, S., Woods, J., & Goldstein, H. (2006). Enhancing generalized teaching strategy use in daily routines by parents of children with autism. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 49, 466–485. doi:10.1044/1092-4388(2006/036).
Kazdin, A. E. (1977). Assessing the clinical or applied importance of behavior change through social validation. Behavior Modification, 1, 427–451.
Meadan, H., Ostrosky, M. M., Zaghlawan, H., & Yu, S. (2009). Promoting the social and communicative behavior of young children with autism spectrum disorders: a review of parent-implemented interventions studies. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 29, 90–104. doi:10.1177/0271121409337950.
Meadan, H., Stoner, J. B., & Angell, M. E. (2013). Parent perspectives on home-based intervention: The parent-implemented communication strategies (PiCS) project. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Meadan, H., Angell, M. E., Stoner, J. B., & Daczewitz, M. (2014). Parent-implemented social-pragmatic communication intervention: a pilot study. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities. doi:10.1177/1088357613517504.
Schwartz, I. S., & Baer, D. M. (1991). Social validity assessments: is current practice state of the art? Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 24, 189–204.
Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). (2013). SPSS base 22.0 for Windows user’s guide. Chicago: SPSS Inc.
Stoner, J. B., Meadan, H., Angell, M. E., & Daczewitz, M. (2012). Evaluation of the Parent-Implemented Communication Strategies (PiCS) project using the Multiattribute Utility (MAU) approach. Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 24, 57–73. doi:10.1007/s11092-011-9136-0.
Storey, K., & Horner, R. H. (1991). An evaluative review of social validation research involving Persons with handicaps. Journal of Special Education, 25, 352–401.
Tabachnick, G., & Fidell, L. (2007). Using multivariate statistics (5th ed.). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
Turan, Y., & Meadan, H. (2011). Social validity assessments: understanding the social importance of goals, procedures, and outcomes in early childhood special education. Young Exceptional Children, 14(3), 13–28.
Wolf, M. (1978). Social validity: the case for subjective measurement or how applied behavior analysis is finding its heart. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 11, 203–214.
Zimmerman, I. L., Steiner, V. G., & Pond, R. E. (2002). Preschool language scale (4th ed.). San Antonio: Harcourt Assessment, Inc.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Meadan, H., Stoner, J.B., Angell, M.E. et al. Do You See a Difference? Evaluating Outcomes of a Parent-Implemented Intervention. J Dev Phys Disabil 26, 415–430 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-014-9376-2
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-014-9376-2