VCU RRTC

 As the ability to identify children with ASD in younger children increases, there is a need for the development interventions that are  appropriate and effective for infants and toddlers.  Recent efforts to develop interventions for this age group have resulted in a novel class of interventions referred to as naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions (NDBIs).  NDBIs are influenced by both behavioral psychology and developmental science and are implemented in natural contexts.  A number of recent evaluations of NDBIs have demonstrated their effectiveness for improving social communication development in toddlers and young children with ASD.   This presentation will provide overview of the development and evaluation of current NDBIs and describe common elements shared by these interventions.  

Bio: Dr. Ingersoll is an associate professor of clinical psychology and the director of the MSU Autism Research Lab.  She received her PhD in experimental psychology at University of California, San Diego and completed a clinical post-doc in child psychology at Oregon Health & Science University.  She is a licensed psychologist and board certified behavior analyst.  Dr. Ingersoll’s research focuses on the development, evaluation, and dissemination of social communication interventions for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).  She also conducts research on the impact of ASD on the family and the broader autism phenotype.  A major emphasis of her current work is on the development of community-focused, parent-mediated interventions for young children with ASD.   Dr. Ingersoll has published more than 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters on ASD, and is the co-author of Teaching Social Communication to Children with Autism, an internationally-recognized parent training curriculum for children with ASD.   Dr. Ingersoll has presented her work to parents, teachers, clinicians, and researchers both nationally and internationally, and has served as a principal investigator on a number of federal, foundation, and university grants.