A Randomized Controlled Trial of the Korean Version of the PEERS® Parent-Assisted Social Skills Training Program for Teens With ASD

Impaired social functioning is a hallmark feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), often requiring treatment throughout the life span. PEERS® (Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills) is a parent‐assisted social skills training for teens with ASD. Although PEERS® has an estab...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Autism research 2014-02, Vol.7 (1), p.145-161
Main Authors: Yoo, Hee-Jeong, Bahn, Geonho, Cho, In-Hee, Kim, Eun-Kyung, Kim, Joo-Hyun, Min, Jung-Won, Lee, Won-Hye, Seo, Jun-Seong, Jun, Sang-Shin, Bong, Guiyoung, Cho, Soochurl, Shin, Min-Sup, Kim, Bung-Nyun, Kim, Jae-Won, Park, Subin, Laugeson, Elizabeth A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
adolescents
Autism
Behavior
Child
Child Development Disorders, Pervasive - diagnosis
Child Development Disorders, Pervasive - psychology
Child Development Disorders, Pervasive - therapy
Children & youth
clinical psychiatry
Clinical trials
Communication
Cross-Cultural Comparison
Education, Nonprofessional - methods
Emotional Intelligence
Feasibility Studies
Female
Hospitals, University
Humans
Interpersonal Relations
intervention
Male
Manuals as Topic
pediatrics
Peer Group
Psychiatric Department, Hospital
Republic of Korea
Social Behavior Disorders - diagnosis
Social Behavior Disorders - psychology
Social Behavior Disorders - therapy
Social skills
social skills intervention
Teenagers
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Summary:Impaired social functioning is a hallmark feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), often requiring treatment throughout the life span. PEERS® (Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills) is a parent‐assisted social skills training for teens with ASD. Although PEERS® has an established evidence base in improving the social skills of adolescents and young adults with ASD in North America, the efficacy of this treatment has yet to be established in cross‐cultural validation trials. The objective of this study is to examine the feasibility and treatment efficacy of a Korean version of PEERS® for enhancing social skills through a randomized controlled trial (RCT).The English version of the PEERS® Treatment Manual (Laugeson & Frankel, 2010) was translated into Korean and reviewed by 21 child mental health professionals. Items identified as culturally sensitive were surveyed by 447 middle school students, and material was modified accordingly. Participants included 47 teens between 12 and 18 years of age with a diagnosis of ASD and a verbal intelligence quotient (IQ) ≥ 65. Eligible teens were randomly assigned to a treatment group (TG) or delayed treatment control group (CG). Primary outcome measures included questionnaires and direct observations quantifying social ability and problems directly related to ASD. Secondary outcome measures included scales for depressive symptoms, anxiety, and other behavioral problems. Rating scales for parental depressive symptoms and anxiety were examined to detect changes in parental psychosocial functioning throughout the PEERS® treatment. Independent samples t‐tests revealed no significant differences at baseline across the TG and CG conditions with regard to age (14.04 ± 1.64 and 13.54 ± 1.50 years), IQ (99.39 ± 18.09 & 100.67 ± 16.97), parental education, socioeconomic status, or ASD symptoms (p 
ISSN:1939-3792
1939-3806
DOI:10.1002/aur.1354