ELIZABETH SHEPHARD
Projetos de Pesquisa
Unidades Organizacionais
LIM/23 - Laboratório de Psicopatologia e Terapêutica Psiquiátrica, Hospital das Clínicas, Faculdade de Medicina
2 resultados
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- Acceptability and feasibility of a parent-mediated social-communication therapy for young autistic children in Brazil: A qualitative implementation study of Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy(2024) GODOY, Priscilla Brandi Gomes; MCWILLIAMS, Lorna; SILVEIRA, Leticia Rodrigues da; BIASAO, Mirian de Cesaro Revers; ALARCAO, Fernanda Speggiorin Pereira; SEDA, Leonardo; CAMPOLI, Renata Generoso; LIANG, Holan; DIVAN, Gauri; LEADBITTER, Kathy; GREEN, Jonathan; SHEPHARD, ElizabethEffective support for autistic individuals is lacking in Brazil. Few centres offer services and those that do are limited in therapeutic options and geographical location. Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy is a low-intensity, evidence-based parent-mediated social-communication intervention that may be useful for this scenario. This implementation study aimed to assess the acceptability and feasibility of Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy for young autistic children (aged 2-10 years) in Brazil. Parents (n = 18) of 2- to 10-year-old autistic children and clinicians (n = 20) who work with autistic children in Brazil were interviewed and the data analysed using thematic analysis to explore their perceptions concerning the acceptability and feasibility of Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy. In addition, Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy was delivered to a case series of 15 further parent-child dyads; these parents were interviewed at the end of the therapy, and the data were analysed using thematic analysis. All parents and clinicians had favourable opinions about the acceptability, feasibility and perceived effectiveness of a parent-mediated intervention conducted mainly in the home. However, they also highlighted obstacles concerning the implementation of Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy in Brazil, especially related to engaging Brazilian parents in a parent-mediated model of therapy. Based on these data, minor adaptations were made to the original Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy protocol to facilitate the implementation of the intervention in Brazil. Lay abstract Parents of autistic children and health professionals who work with autistic children in Brazil had positive views about introducing Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy as a therapy for autistic children in Brazil. The parents and clinicians also mentioned some difficulties about using Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy in Brazil. We made adaptations to Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy to address these difficulties. Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy is a therapy to support the development of social and communication skills for autistic children aged 2-10 years. The therapy is conducted with the autistic child's parent. Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy has not been used in Brazil before. There are few therapy options available for autistic children in Brazil and we believed that Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy may be useful. We asked three groups of people in Brazil about their views of Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy, after explaining how the therapy works. Group 1 included 18 parents of autistic children aged 2-10 years. Group 2 included 20 health professionals such as psychologists who work with autistic children. Group 3 included 15 parents of autistic children aged 2-7 years who received the Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy. We learned that parents and clinicians felt that Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy would be a beneficial therapy for autistic children in Brazil. We also found out about the challenges of using Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy in Brazil. We used these findings to make small cultural adaptations to Paediatric Autism Communication Therapy to make it more suitable for Brazil.
- Networks of Neurodevelopmental Traits, Socioenvironmental Factors, Emotional Dysregulation in Childhood, and Depressive Symptoms Across Development in Two UK Cohorts(2023) FARHAT, Luis C.; BLAKEY, Rachel; SMITH, George Davey; FUJITA, Andre; SHEPHARD, Elizabeth; STERGIAKOULI, Evie; ELEY, Thalia C.; THAPAR, Anita; POLANCZYK, Guilherme V.Objective: Previous population-based studies have identified associations between childhood neurodevelopmental traits and depression in childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood. However, neurodevelopmental traits are highly correlated with each other, which could confound associations when traits are examined in isolation. The authors sought to identify unique associations between multiple neurodevelopmental traits in childhood and depressive symptoms across development, while taking into account co-occurring difficulties, in multivariate analyses. Methods: Data from two U.K. population-based cohorts, the Twins Early Development Study (TEDS) (N=4,407 independent twins) and the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) (N=10,351), were independently analyzed. Bayesian Gaussian graphical models were estimated to investigate pairwise conditional associations between neurodevelopmental traits (autism and ADHD symptoms and general cognitive, learning, and communication abilities), socioenvironmental stressors (academic performance and peer relations), and emotional dysregulation in childhood (ages 7-11) and depressive symptoms across development (ages 12, 16, and 21). Results: In both cohorts, bivariate correlations indicated several associations between neurodevelopmental traits and depressive symptoms across development. However, based on replicated findings across cohorts, these pairs of variables were mostly conditionally independent, and none were conditionally associated, after accounting for socioenvironmental stressors and emotional dysregulation. In turn, socioenvironmental stressors and emotional dysregulation were conditionally associated with both neurodevelopmental traits and depressive symptoms. Based on replicated findings across cohorts, neurodevelopmental traits in childhood could be associated only indirectly with depressive symptoms across development. Conclusions: This study indicates that associations between childhood neurodevelopmental traits and depressive symptoms across development could be explained by socioenvironmental stressors and emotional dysregulation. The present findings could inform future research aimed at the prevention of depression in youths with neurodevelopmental disorders.