Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38743153›Full record

ArticleJournal of autism and developmental disorders2025

Generalisation of Social Communication Skills by Autistic Children During Play-Based Assessments Across Home, School and an Unfamiliar Research Setting.

Sophie Carruthers, Tony Charman, Kathy Leadbitter, Ceri Ellis, Lauren Taylor, Heather Moore, Carol Taylor, Kirsty James, Matea Balabanovska, Sophie Langhorne and 11 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

21 authors.

Sophie CarruthersDepartment of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Tony CharmanDepartment of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK. tony.charman@kcl.ac.uk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1993-6549
Kathy LeadbitterDivision of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Ceri EllisDivision of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Lauren TaylorDepartment of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Heather MoorePopulation Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Sir James Spence Institute, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK.
Carol TaylorDivision of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Kirsty JamesDepartment of Biostatistics & Health Informatics, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Matea BalabanovskaDivision of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Sophie LanghorneDivision of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Catherine AldredDivision of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Vicky SlonimsEvelina London Children's Hospital, Guy's & St Thomas' NHS Foundations Trust, London, UK.
Vicki GrahameComplex Neurodevelopmental Disorders Service (CNDS), Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
Patricia HowlinDepartment of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Helen McConachiePopulation Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Sir James Spence Institute, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK.
Jeremy ParrPopulation Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Sir James Spence Institute, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK.
Richard EmsleyDepartment of Biostatistics & Health Informatics, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Ann Le CouteurPopulation Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Sir James Spence Institute, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK.
Jonathan GreenDivision of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Andrew PicklesDepartment of Biostatistics & Health Informatics, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
and the PACT-G Trial Group

Funding

Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation Programme 13/119/18Medical Research Council MR/N013700/1National Institute for Health and Care Research NF-SI-0617-10120National Institute for Health and Care Research NF-SI-0617-10168
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

We investigated autistic children's generalisation of social communication over time across three settings during a play-based assessment with different adults and explore the potential moderating effects on generalisation of age, nonverbal IQ and level of restricted and repetitive behaviours. The social communication abilities of 248 autistic children (2-11 years, 21% female, 22% single parent, 60% white) from three UK sites were assessed from 1984 video interactions in three contexts with three different interaction partners (parent/home, teaching assistant/school, researcher/clinic) at baseline, midpoint (+ 7m) and endpoint (+ 12m) within the Paediatric Autism Communication Trial-Generalised (PACT-G), a parent-mediated social communication intervention. Children's midpoint social communication at home generalised to school at midpoint and to clinic at endpoint. Generalisation was stronger from home to school and clinic than school to home and clinic. Generalisation was not moderated by age, nonverbal IQ or restricted and repetitive behaviour. Broader child development did not explain the pattern of results. The current study is the largest study to date to explore generalisation with autistic children and provides novel insight into their generalisation of social communication skills. Further research is needed to gain a more comprehensive understanding of facilitators of generalisation across settings and interaction partners in order to develop targeted strategies for interventions to enhance outcomes for young autistic children.

Indexed as

Autism Spectrum DisorderAutistic DisorderCommunicationGeneralization, PsychologicalPlay and PlaythingsSocial InteractionSocial SkillsChildChild, PreschoolFemaleHumansMaleSchoolsAutismDevelopmentGeneralisationSocial communication

Identifiers

PMID38743153
PMCPMC12167233

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.