Funded by: Department of Defense Autism Research Program; Edith L. Trees Charitable Trust
Principal Investigator: Carla Mazefsky, PhD & Susan White, PhD (University of Alabama)
Status: Closed to recruitment; data analysis underway
What was the study about?
Our team developed a new emotion regulation intervention for autistic teenagers and young adults called Emotional Awareness and Skills Enhancement (EASE). This project tested EASE in comparison to supportive counseling sessions to see if EASE helps autistic teenagers and adults improve their emotion regulation skills.
What happened in the study?
This research study compared EASE to a general supportive therapy in autistic, speaking 12- 21-year-olds with an IQ > 75 who struggle with handling their emotions.
- Participants were randomly assigned to receive either EASE Therapy or Supportive Therapy; both consisted of 16 weekly individual therapy sessions.
- Participants and their caregivers completed assessments, interviews, and questionnaires before, during, and after the therapy intervention.
- Additionally, participants could participate in an optional Electroencephalography (EEG)- viewing pictures and playing a game on a computer while wearing a cap with sensors and cables attached that measure brain activity- before and after the therapy intervention.
What did we learn from this study?
Final results are pending. The following featured publications have some preliminary outcomes on EASE.