Peterson Tami, Dodson Jessica, Strale Frederick
Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, The Oxford Center, Brighton, USA.
Applied Behavior Analysis, The Oxford Center, Brighton, USA.
Cureus. 2024 Feb 1;16(2):e53372. doi: 10.7759/cureus.53372. eCollection 2024 Feb.
Applied behavior analysis (ABA) is a primary evidence-based practice in treating autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Ongoing research is needed to report the results of ABA relative to attaining target behaviors. This study aims to replicate the results of previous research to determine the effectiveness of ABA of target behaviors in autistic children with a new timepoint sample of data. Materials & methods: A repeated measures analysis tracked 98 autistic children, which included four adult participants, over three timepoints during a one-month snapshot period from 6/7/23 to 7/7/23. This study used a retrospective chart review to gather data on target behaviors to determine the effectiveness of ABA treatments across age categories. A mixed (between x within) analysis of variance (ANOVA) and subsequent post hoc and interaction contrasts were used to determine statistical significance.
Mixed (between x within) ANOVA indicated statistical significance (sphericity assumed), F(2,160) = 32.893, and p < 0.05, across time. Using bootstrapped paired t-tests, multiple comparisons indicated p < 0.001 on all three multiple comparisons, with Bonferroni corrected α = 0.017. There was also a non-significant interaction effect (sphericity assumed) with (time) x (age category), F(8,160) = 0.333, p = 0.952, likely due to sizeable within-group variation resulting in a lowered statistical power. Conclusions: This replication found that autistic children receiving the ABA intervention demonstrated statistically significant improvement in target behaviors over the one-month snapshot period.
应用行为分析（ABA）是治疗自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）的主要循证实践方法。需要持续开展研究以报告ABA在实现目标行为方面的结果。本研究旨在复制先前研究的结果，以通过新的时间点数据样本确定ABA对自闭症儿童目标行为的有效性。
一项重复测量分析在2023年6月7日至2023年7月7日的一个月快照期内的三个时间点跟踪了98名自闭症儿童，其中包括四名成年参与者。本研究采用回顾性病历审查来收集目标行为的数据，以确定ABA治疗在不同年龄组中的有效性。使用混合（组间x组内）方差分析（ANOVA）以及随后的事后检验和交互对比来确定统计学显著性。
混合（组间x组内）方差分析表明，在各个时间点上具有统计学显著性（假定为球形分布），F(2,160) = 32.893，p < 0.05。使用自抽样配对t检验，多重比较表明在所有三次多重比较中p < 0.001，经邦费罗尼校正的α = 0.017。（时间）x（年龄组）之间也存在不显著的交互效应（假定为球形分布），F(8,160) = 0.333，p = 0.952，这可能是由于组内差异较大导致统计功效降低。
本次重复研究发现，接受ABA干预的自闭症儿童在一个月的快照期内目标行为有统计学显著改善。
