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Results from a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of a Single-Session Growth-Mindset Intervention for Internalizing Symptoms in Autistic Youth
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Results from a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of a Single-Session Growth-Mindset Intervention for Internalizing Symptoms in Autistic Youth

Alan H Gerber, Allison Nahmias, Jessica L Schleider and Matthew D Lerner
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, v 55, pp 3050-3064
04 Jun 2024
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-024-06341-2
Featured in Collection :   UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
url
https://osf.io/nafwzView
SubmittedOpen Access (License Unspecified),  Open

Abstract

Autistic youth experience elevated rates of co-occurring internalizing symptoms. Interventions to treat internalizing symptoms in autistic youth are almost uniformly costly and time-intensive, blunting dissemination of intervention and highlighting the need for scalable solutions. One promising option is a relatively new class of evidence-based treatments, single-session interventions (SSIs), however, no study has examined SSIs for depression symptoms in autistic youth. Participants included 40 autistic adolescents ranging in age from 11 to 16 (Mage = 14.22, Nmale = 32). Eligible youth who agreed to participate were randomized to either the active intervention (Project Personality), or an active control designed to mimic supportive therapy. Participants and their caregiver completed questionnaires immediately before, after, and three months post intervention. All participants completed the intervention independently and largely reported enjoying it. The intervention was delivered with 100% fidelity. Findings demonstrated improvements in perceived primary control, malleability of personality, and social competence relative to the active control group immediately post-intervention. Further, results revealed improvements in self-reported depression symptoms and parent reported emotional regulation at 3-month follow up. This study was the first to assess a GM-SSI designed to treat depression symptoms in autistic adolescents. Results indicated improvements in perceived control immediately post-intervention and downstream improvements in depression. Nonetheless, we did not find improvements in symptoms of anxiety, suggesting that autistic adolescents may require modifications to the intervention to maximize benefit. Findings demonstrate the utility of GM-SSI for internalizing symptoms for autistic youth and hold considerable promise as a low-intensity and scalable intervention.

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5 citations in Web of Science
2 citations in Scopus

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UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This publication has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:

#3 Good Health and Well-Being

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
Web of Science research areas
Psychology, Developmental
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