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Feasibility Trial of Parent-delivered Social Communication Program

NCT06847347 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 46

Last updated 2025-02-26

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

The Hanen Centre®'s More Than Words® (MTW) program is a globally used, parent coaching intervention delivered by speech-language pathologists (SLPs) to parents of children with social communication challenges, including those who have a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of autism. The training program is designed to provide parents with the tools, strategies, and support they need to help their children reach their full communication and social interaction potential. In this study, children and parents enrolled in the MTW program as a part of their current standard of care will be recruited by their SLPs from their community sites of the publicly-funded Ontario Preschool Speech and Language Program. The primary aim is to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of study procedures in recruitment and data collection involving parents and children receiving MTW in the community. The investigators will also examine changes in child communication, parent-child social interactions, parent confidence, and parent use of social communication strategies prior to and following participation in the program. Findings from this study will inform the optimal design of a future pragmatic randomized control trial to examine the effectiveness of the MTW program for preschool children and their caregivers.

Conditions

  • Social Communication Disorder
  • Autism

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

More Than Words®

More Than Words® (MTW) is a 13-week parent-implemented program designed to enhance communication, play development, and parent-child interaction for children under 4 years of age who have autism or social communication challenges. MTW is delivered by speech-language pathologists (SLPs) certified by The Hanen Centre, a global not-for-profit organization based in Toronto. MTW is delivered virtually in this trial. The program an orientation session, an individual pre-program consultation appointment, 8 x 2½ hour group training sessions (with 6-8 parents per group), and 3 individual video feedback sessions. During video feedback, the parent demonstrates use of communication facilitation strategies with their child, while the SLP records the interactions. The parent and SLP then review the videos together, analyze use of the strategies and how the child responded, and formulate plans to foster development of new skills.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • The Hanen Centre

    collaborator UNKNOWN

  • Western University, Canada

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Janis Oram · Western University

Study Design

Allocation
NA
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Model
SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Max Age
47 Months
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2022-01-01
Primary Completion
2023-04-30
Completion
2023-04-30

Countries

  • Canada

Study Locations

More Related Trials

Entities

Diseases

Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT06847347 on ClinicalTrials.gov