Trial reportJournal of consulting and clinical psychology2021
Modular cognitive behavioral therapy for autism-related symptoms in children: A randomized controlled trial.
Trial report in Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
17 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 32 citations in OpenAlex.
- Meta-analysis of Psychotherapy for Autistic Youth.Child psychiatry and human development · 2026Pooled it
- Effectiveness of social skills training interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Saudi medical journal · 2025Pooled it
- Practitioner Adherence and Competence in MEYA, a Free Online Self-Instruction Program in Modular Psychotherapy and Counseling for Children's Autism-Related Clinical Needs.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2025Trial
- Examining the Relationship Between Anxiety Severity and Autism-Related Challenges During Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Children with Autism.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2024Trial
- A cluster randomized controlled trial comparing the effectiveness of two school-based interventions for autistic youth with anxiety.BMC psychiatry · 2024Trial
- Treatment Fidelity and Outcome in CBT for Youth with Autism: The MEYA Fidelity Scale.Journal of clinical child and adolescent psychology : the official journal for the Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, American Psychological Association, Division 53Trial
- Research Review: Emotion regulation in individuals with intellectual disability - an integrative review.Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines · 2026Review
- Estimating the Efficacy of CBT for Children on the Autism Spectrum Using a Home-Based Video Assessment of Autism-Related Solitary Behavior.Child psychiatry and human development · 2026Article
- [Modular psychotherapy-Toward personalized psychotherapy].Der Nervenarzt · 2026Review
- Innovations to improve outcomes and uptake of psychotherapies for mental disorders: a state-of-the-art review.World psychiatry : official journal of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA) · 2026Article
- Applications and potential mechanisms of transcranial magnetic stimulation in autism spectrum disorders.Journal of translational medicine · 2026Review
- Initial Analysis of the Effectiveness of Compass-Behavioral for Autistic Youth: A Community-Based Retrospective Analysis.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Predictors of Treatment Outcomes in Internet-Delivered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Among Autistic Youth With Anxiety Disorders.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2025Article
- Effects of Computerized Cognitive Training in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2025Article
- Anxiety Symptoms Predict Subsequent Depressive Symptoms in Neurodivergent Youth: A 10-Year Longitudinal Study.Research on child and adolescent psychopathology · 2025Article
- Community-guided, autism-adapted group cognitive behavioral therapy for depression in autistic youth (CBT-DAY): Preliminary feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy.Autism : the international journal of research and practice · 2024Article
- Shared Decision-Making as a Tool for Navigating Multi-Stakeholder Discrepancies in Youth Psychotherapy.Journal of clinical child and adolescent psychology : the official journal for the Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, American Psychological Association, Division 53Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo date, no one-on-one psychotherapy protocol for elementary and middle school-aged children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been found to be efficacious for treating autism-related symptoms such as failure to initiate social interactions. This study compared modular cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) with enhanced standard community treatment (ESCT) in terms of impact on the severity of autism-related symptoms.
methodChildren with ASD (N = 107; aged 6-13 years) were randomly assigned to a treatment condition (CBT or ESCT). Both treatments provided 32 therapy sessions. The CBT condition utilized a modular design, matching specific evidence-based treatment elements to each child's clinical needs (e.g., social-communication symptoms). The ESCT condition provided social skills training and cognitive behavioral training in a structured and linear group therapy format. The primary outcome measure was independent evaluator ratings of peer engagement during school recess using a structured and validated observation system. Parents also made session-by-session ratings on personalized autism-related symptom profiles throughout treatment.
resultsCBT outperformed ESCT on the primary outcome measure (p < .001; d = .50; 95% CI [.06, .93]) and the secondary outcome measure (p = .003; d = .87; 95% CI [.45, 1.27]).
conclusionsThe modular one-on-one CBT program evaluated in this study may be beneficial for reducing the severity of autism-related symptoms in some children with ASD. Further research is needed to clarify the extent of the treatment effect and the feasibility of implementation for therapists in the community. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.