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Culturally Informed Early Intervention: Efficacy Studies to Support Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Autistic Learners

April 10, 2025 from 11:00 am to 12:20 pm

This symposium will highlight three autism interventions focused on supporting culturally and linguistically diverse learners with, or at risk for autism. The first two papers examine the efficacy of the “Parents Taking Action” intervention within a sample of low-income Chinese mothers (Paper 1) and Korean immigrant parents (Paper 2). Findings from both papers showed improvement in children’s social communication and behavior and parents’ self-efficacy and empowerment. The third paper examines the feasibility, acceptability, and utility of the ASPEN screening program, a screening and parent engagement intervention to support culturally diverse families and their autistic children. Findings show that caregivers reported high satisfaction of the intervention program for a sample of low-resourced families including multilingual households. Discussant remarks will identify connections and reflections for how to continue designing interventions that are culturally sustainable and meaningful for all families.

Chair: Shana Cohen, University of California, San Diego,

Discussant: Sandra Magana, University of Texas at Austin

First Presentation: Pilot Results of a Culturally-Adapted Parent Training Intervention for Low-Income Chinese Immigrant Families of Children with Autism
Yue Xu, University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford, Feifei Chen, Illinois Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disorders
Mansha Mirza, University of Illinois at Chicago, Department of Occupational Therapy
Sandy MagaƱa, University of Texas at Austin, Steve Hicks School of Social Work

Second Presentation: Pilot Trial of a Peer-led Pscyhoeducational Intervention for Korean Immigrant Caregivers of Children with Autism
Irang Kim, Tulane University,

Third Presentation: Feasibility, Acceptability, and Utility of the ASD Screening and Parent ENgagement (ASPEN) Program for Families in Low-Resource Households
Sandra Vanegas, University of Texas at Austin,