Zeitschrift für Psychologie und Psychotherapie
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Abstrakt

Effects of Safe and Sound Protocol System on Psychological and Physiological Functions of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Preliminary Findings

Makiko Kishimoto, Yuki Sekido, Hiroki Kawai, Manabu Takaki

Background: Listening therapy addresses auditory processing challenges and difficulties associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and aims to improve social function and behavioural problems by providing filtered sound in people with ASD. However, contradictory findings have been reported on its efficacy in children with ASD.

Methods: This pilot study assessed the 1-week and 3-month outcome of Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) on core deficits of autism, including social communication and Restricted, Repetitive Behaviours (RRB) and interests; receptive language; and sensory processing in 24 children with ASD aged 44-119 months.

Results: A statistically significant reduction was observed in the total score of Social Responsiveness Scale-2 (SRS-2) with additional improvement in one of the subdomains (RRB and interests) and in one of the quadrants of Sensory Profile (SP) (low registration and sensory avoidance) and auditory category of SP at 1 week after the intervention compared to baseline. However, all of these gains were not maintained at 3 months after the intervention compared to the baseline. This indicates that the effect of the intervention diminished overtime. Additional analysis indicated that children aged<6 years with mild autistic symptoms and higher language development may respond favourably to this intervention.

Conclusion: Mixed results were obtained in this pilot study on SSP’s effects and feasibility in children with ASD. Further research of higher quality is needed to determine its efficacy and establish if SSP can be a potential treatment option for symptoms associated with autism.