Parental reflections on family adjustment and life satisfaction for the young adult since leaving school highlight the lack of post-school options and the impact of these circumstances on the whole family.

, T. (2013). The double ABCX model of family adaptation in families of a child with an autism spectrum disorder attending an Australian early intervention service.

Background Despite decades of research on family adaptation in relation to caring for a child with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), the wellbeing of fathers remains poorly understood. Method The present study sought to investigate experiences of fathers of young children with ASD aged between 2½ and 6 years attending an autism-specific early intervention centre. Eighteen fathers initially completed a mailed questionnaire and eight of these fathers were then interviewed by telephone. The questionnaire included standardised measures assessing constructs of the Double ABCX model of family adaptation. The interview used open-ended questions to understand the experiences of fathers' involvement in caring, sources of support, and coping strategies. Results Fathers experienced elevated levels of parental stress and elevated depressive symptoms. Interviews deepened understanding of fathers' personal experiences of each component of the Double ABCX model. Conclusions Limitations, directions for future research, and practical implications are discussed.

This rural Australian study explored the effects of child-centered play therapy (CCPT) on the social and emotional growth of 3 young children with autism ages 4Ϫ6 years. Parents sought private therapy for the emotional and behavioral difficulties these children were experiencing at home and in educational settings. All children participated in 10 weekly, individual therapy sessions, which focused on targeted goals set by parents. Two instruments, the Adaptive Behavior Assessment System, Second Edition, and the Developmental Behavior Checklist, were used to formally measure social and emotional growth pre-and postintervention. Informal data were also gathered on each child's targeted goal using Goal Attainment Scaling and weekly parent reflections. Data from both formal and informal measures showed positive improvements for all children in several areas of social and emotional functioning. Results indicated that CCPT was an effective intervention for this small sample of young children with autism. Limitations, implications, and recommendations are discussed.

This study addresses the predictive validity of results from a screening system of academic enablers, with a sample of Australian elementary school students, when the criterion variable is end-of-year achievement. The investigation included (a) comparing the predictive validity of a brief criterion-referenced nomination system with more comprehensive behavior ratings, and (b) determining the optimal combination of scores to gather from this system for identifying academic difficulties. Students (n = 360) were rated using both the Performance Screening Guides (PSGs; Elliott & Gresham, 2007) and the Rating Scales (Gresham & Elliott, 2008) of the Social Skills Improvement System. The PSGs were highly sensitive (0.95) predictors of below minimum standard performance on the national test. The Rating Scales, including the brief academic competence scale in particular, added predictive value in most domains. The discussion addresses implications of these findings for school psychologists and other educators interested in the role of social behaviors as academic enablers and predictors of academic achievement.

Decades of research on social skills assessment and intervention indicates the importance of social skills in improving academic achievement. Additionally, a strong evidence base promotes the inclusion of social–emotional learning into the whole school curriculum. In recognition of this evidence, the new Australian Curriculum, under Personal and social capability, calls for students to develop social skills. For many students with additional needs, it is hoped that the development of social skills will enable increased connectedness and a greater sense of inclusion. To meet developmental expectations of social skills, teachers need to measure these skills, develop effective teaching strategies for them, and evaluate their progress. The multi-tiered assessment and intervention components of the Social Skills Improvement System (SSiS; Elliott & Gresham, 2007) seem to offer a comprehensive system to support this process (Elliott, Frey, & Davies, in press).

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