Child and family factors associated with the use of services for preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder

This study examines child and family characteristics thought to affect the dosage and type of common in-school and private services (i.e., speech language therapy (SLT), occupational therapy (OT) and applied behavior analysis (ABA)) received by children with ASD. Participants included 137 families and their preschool-aged children with ASD from four states: Colorado, Florida, Minnesota, and North Carolina. Our results indicated child and family characteristics did impact the type and dosage of services used. In the school setting, Hispanic children received a smaller dose of SLT and OT than White children. Children with greater cognitive impairments received more SLT and those with more severe symptoms of autism received a larger dosage of OT. In the private setting, higher levels of caregiver stress were related to increase usage of OT. Caregivers with a higher socioeconomic status were more likely to enroll their children in OT and ABA. Implications for practice and policy are discussed, including the need to better understand and remediate differences in service provision across socioeconomic and minority status.

► Factors linked to service type and dosage for children with ASD were examined.
► Child characteristics were related to in-school service dosage.
► Family characteristics were related to the likelihood of private service use.
► Models for count data were used to examine associations among variables.
► Results can be used to remediate differences in access to and dosage of services.