Autism, Depressed, Depressed Mood
Conditions
Keywords
Autism, Depression
Brief summary
Autism spectrum disorder is characterized by differences in social communication/interaction and the presence of restricted/repetitive behaviors, with significant heterogeneity in terms of autistic features, language ability, and cognitive characteristics. About 2-3% of individuals in the United States are autistic, and most autistic individuals have co-occurring mental health conditions. Autistic people are 3-4 times more likely to experience depression than non-autistic people. Of the emerging depression treatment research with autistic people, none to date has focused on developing and testing a depression treatment for autistic youth with below average cognitive abilities - a group which comprises over 50% of the autistic community. Therefore, this study seeks to evaluate the feasibility (Aim 1), acceptability (Aim 2), and preliminary treatment effects (Aim 3) of an extension of Behavioral Activation for Depression in Autistic Adolescents (BA-A), adapted to meet the needs of cognitively lower functioning autistic youth.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALBA-A
BA-A is an individually delivered manualized 12-session treatment that utilizes established behavioral strategies and incorporates common mental health treatment adaptations for autistic young people.
Sponsors
Stony Brook University
Study design
Allocation
NA
Intervention model
SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
12 Years to 17 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* 12-17 years old * Autism diagnosis * Symptoms of depression (more specifically, Children's Depression Inventory, Second Edition parent-report and/or self-report T-score ⩾ 65) * IQ 60-84 * Stable on medications for mood, anxiety, and/or behavior for 3 months * Participation of same parent(s) in all therapy sessions and assessment visits
Exclusion criteria
* Participation in another psychotherapy during the study period * Imminent risk of harm to self and/or others * Bipolar disorder, a personality disorder, and/or schizophrenia or another psychotic disorder
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Children's Depression Rating Scale, Revised | Baseline, Post-Treatment (i.e., after completion of 12 weekly therapy sessions [typically 12-13 weeks after baseline]), 1-Month Follow-Up (1 month following completion of therapy sessions) |
| Children's Depression Inventory, Second Edition | Baseline, Post-Treatment (i.e., after completion of 12 weekly therapy sessions [typically 12-13 weeks after baseline]), 1-Month Follow-Up (1 month following completion of therapy sessions) |
| Aberrant Behavior Checklist | Baseline, Post-Treatment (i.e., after completion of 12 weekly therapy sessions [typically 12-13 weeks after baseline]), 1-Month Follow-Up (1 month following completion of therapy sessions) |
| Behavioral Activation for Depression Scale-Short Form | Baseline, Post-Treatment (i.e., after completion of 12 weekly therapy sessions [typically 12-13 weeks after baseline]), 1-Month Follow-Up (1 month following completion of therapy sessions) |
| Acceptability of Intervention Measure | Post-Treatment (i.e., after completion of 12 weekly therapy sessions [typically 12-13 weeks after baseline]) |
| Intervention Appropriateness Measure | Post-Treatment (i.e., after completion of 12 weekly therapy sessions [typically 12-13 weeks after baseline]) |
| Feasibility of Intervention Measure | Post-Treatment (i.e., after completion of 12 weekly therapy sessions [typically 12-13 weeks after baseline]) |
Countries
United States
Contacts
CONTACTMichelle Menezes, PhD
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORMichelle Menezes, PhD
Stony Brook University
Outcome results
None listed