Using Virtual Coaching to Teach Caregivers to Support the Play of Their Children with Disabilities

Abstract

Play provides a developmentally appropriate context for children to participate in meaningful activities, learn and develop skills across domains, and develop friendships (Barton & Wolery, 2008; Barton et al, 2018; Ginsburg, 2007). However, children with disabilities are often delayed in their play skills (Barton, 2015; Movahedazarhouligh, 2018; Nelson et al., 2020). In March 2020, the Novel Corona Virus (COVID-19) was classified as a global pandemic (WHO, 2020; Cucinotta & Vanelli, 2020). Efforts to curb the viral spread translated to disruptions in services that have impacted the development and learning of the children and heightened caregiver stress (Neece et al., 2020). One means to support caregivers and their children is to teach caregivers to support their child’s development and learning, which may be particularly important during the current pandemic. In this study, we examined the effect of virtual coaching on caregiver use of caregiver-mediated interventions (CMI). We used a multiple probe across behaviors single case research design with two caregiver-child dyads. Dyads included a primary caregiver, in both cases mothers, and their preschool-aged child with a diagnosed developmental disability. We identified a functional relation between the coaching provided to caregivers and the caregiver’s use of a multi-component CMI intervention to teach play to their children. Further, caregivers maintained their use of CMI after training and coaching were faded. However, there was no relation between the caregiver’s use of the intervention and the child’s play. Our results expand our knowledge about CMI used to teach play as research has been limited to date.