Autism Insights

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine if behaviors specifically related to sensory modulation showed positive changes following 10 days of Berard auditory integration training (AIT).

Method: Cases of 54 children with disabilities (34 with autism), ages 3–10 years, who received Berard AIT, were reviewed. Children received 30 minutes of training twice a day, separated by a minimum of three hours, for 10 consecutive days. Data were collected within one week before intervention and at one, three, and six months post-intervention.

Results: Analysis of variance (ANOVA) indicated that Short Sensory Profile (SSP) total test scores and individual factor sections improved from pre-test to post-test (P , 0.01). Behavioral problems reduced on all five factors of the Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC) (P , 0.01). Most changes occurred within one month of intervention and maintained at three and six months. Correlations among the ABC and SSP factors indicate that sensory modulation as measured by the SSP is a significant contributor to four of the behavioral factors measured by the ABC.

Conclusions: Although causality cannot be determined using this study design, scores on the SSP and ABC improved in a group of children who received Berard AIT.