AUTISM THERAPY
Evidence vs. Speculation:
How to Know Which
ASD Therapies Work
By Stephanie BATES, BCBA
earch online for “autism therapy for chil-
dren,” and you will get more than 90 mil-
lion results offering information on every-
thing from applied behavior analysis (ABA),
equine therapy, restricted diets, hyperbaric
chambers, speech therapy, occupational
therapy, and alternating tactile stimulation,
to behavioral therapy, chelation, electroconvulsive
therapy, and so much more. S The answer is “evidence-based therapy.” Simply put,
“evidence-based” refers to a treatment that scientists
have found to be effective at helping people with
specific problems. Looking for evidence of a thera-
py’s results can help you tell the difference between
therapies that have been shown to help many kids
with autism and therapies whose impact is unknown.
Parents want the best for their children and are will-
ing to try anything that might help, but identifying
a therapy that will help can be confusing. With so
many options available, how can parents tell which
therapies actually work? Evidence-based therapy may sound complicated,
but the basics are simple. First, it means scientific
research has been conducted with enough partici-
pants who have shown statistically significant im-
provement. Scientists use advanced mathematical
16 | Autism Parenting Magazine | Issue 72
What is Evidence-Based Therapy?