This article reports on the feasibility of implementing an existing empirically based program, The Incredible Years, tailored to parents of young children with autism spectrum disorder. Parents raising preschool-aged children (aged 3-6 years) with autism spectrum disorder (N = 17) participated in a 15-week pilot trial of the intervention. Quantitative assessments of the program revealed fidelity was generally maintained, with the exception of program-specific videos. Qualitative data from individual post-intervention interviews reported parents benefited most from child emotion regulation strategies, play-based child behavior skills, parent stress management, social support, and visual resources. More work is needed to further refine the program to address parent self-care, partner relationships, and the diverse behavioral and communication challenges of children across the autism spectrum. Furthermore, parent access and retention could potentially be increased by providing in-home childcare vouchers and a range of times and locations in which to offer the program. The findings suggest The Incredible Years is a feasible intervention for parents seeking additional support for child- and family-related challenges and offers guidance to those communities currently using The Incredible Years or other related parenting programs with families of children with autism spectrum disorder.
Keywords: The Incredible Years; autism spectrum disorder; early intervention; family functioning and support; interventions—psychosocial/behavioral; parent stress; parent training; preschool children.
© The Author(s) 2015.