| Sumario: | Purpose: The purpose of this review was to examine the effects of interventions targeting joint attention (JA) on language outcomes of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Method: Five databases were searched for studies meeting inclusion criteria for JA treatments. The articles were reviewed in two phases: titles/abstracts followed by full text. This resulted in 21 studies meeting inclusion criteria. The authors independently extracted and coded key variables related to participants, study design, intervention, JA, and language outcomes. Results: Of the 21 studies, 17 were original studies and 4 reported on follow-up analyses. More than half reported utilizing a combined treatment approach to target JA that included behavioral and developmental strategies. Ten of the 20 studies that examined expressive language reported significant gains for the JA treatment group, with 4 of 10 reporting receptive language gains for the JA group. Conclusion: While the majority of studies to date have focused on expressive language, results of this review provide generally equivocal and moderate support for improvement in language outcomes for children with ASD receiving JA interventions. Continued research related to JA intervention delivered in community settings is needed to determine critical features that may lead to the greatest changes in language.
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