Project Activities
. The research team—in consultation with EI providers, administrators, and Spanish-speaking families—will use an iterative process to develop LAPE-e Online and ensure it is feasible, useful, and acceptable for Spanish-speaking Latinx families and sustainable for delivery within early intervention systems. A randomized controlled trial will be used to pilot test the promise of the intervention for improving caregiver use of language facilitation strategies and child language abilities as well as analyze the cost of the intervention.
Structured Abstract
Setting
In the initial phases of the study, the research team will gather data from families and providers in Oregon and Washington. The data from tests of feasibility and promise will be collected remotely from participants in their homes, where EI services typically take place in IDEA Part C systems, in these same states.
Sample
Four Spanish-speaking Latinx caregivers of children with LD, four EI providers, and two EI administrators will participate in the initial development phase. Six Spanish-speaking Latinx caregivers of children under age 3 with LD will participate in the single-case study and another 30 such caregivers will participate with their children in the randomized controlled trial pilot study.
Intervention
. LAPE-e Online will be an adaptive, naturalistic communication intervention designed to facilitate the language development of young children with LD by building the skills of their caregivers through web-based modules and live video coaching sessions. The LAPE-e Online intervention will be adapted to each family's individualized needs, based on measures of caregiver self-efficacy and child vocabulary, as well as data from video recordings of caregivers practicing the strategies with their child during brief home routines. Over the course of 9 to 16 weeks, depending on the family's needs, caregivers will complete four to six intervention modules with lessons and coaching sessions on language-facilitating strategies. Coaching sessions will use the evidence-based Teach-Model-Coach-Review method to enhance caregivers' knowledge, buy-in, and effective use of strategies.
Research design and methods
. An iterative process will be used to develop and test LAPE-e Online. To begin, focus groups with advisory board members—consisting of Spanish-speaking Latinx caregivers, EI providers, and EI administrators—will be conducted to obtain input that will help guide development. These advisory board members will consult on the coaching approaches and review a prototype of the web-based app. In addition, subject matter experts will consult on fidelity measures and coaching approaches, and they will review the app prototype. The research team will then conduct a nonconcurrent multiple baseline single-case design study to examine the intervention's feasibility, usability, acceptability, and fidelity of implementation to inform revisions to LAPE-e Online. Finally, a pilot test using matched random assignment will be completed to determine the intervention's promise for supporting caregiver and child behavior change, and cost, compared to business-as-usual services.
Control condition
The participants in the control condition will receive business-as-usual EI services.
Key measures
Focus groups and individual surveys will be used during the initial iterative development. Implementation measures include (a) caregiver exit interviews, (b) anonymous caregiver satisfaction surveys, (c) coaching field notes, (d) web-based app user analytics, and (e) fidelity checklists. Caregiver and child outcome measures for the pilot test include (a) observational samples of caregiver–child interactions during trained and untrained routines (to measure caregiver strategy use and child rate of communication and communicative functions), (b) the Caregiver Self-Efficacy Survey, and (c) the English-Spanish Vocabulary Inventory.
Data analytic strategy
During the development process and initial tests of feasibility, usability, acceptability, and fidelity, descriptive statistics will be used with data from the surveys and app analytics. Qualitative data from the open-ended responses and focus groups will be analyzed via thematic content analysis. Caregiver and child outcome data from the single-case design study will be graphed and visually analyzed for preliminary evidence of a functional relation between the intervention and caregiver and child outcomes. In the pilot study, intervention effects will be determined using a linear mixed model. Qualitative and quantitative data will be triangulated to determine final revisions to the intervention.
Cost analysis strategy
Researchers will conduct a cost analysis of the fully developed intervention using the ingredients method. The average cost of LAPE-e Online, as a supplement or substitute for typical IDEA Part C services, will be compared to business-as-usual costs and a sensitivity analysis will be conducted to account for a range of costs due to the adaptive design and varied dosage of the intervention.
Products and publications
Products. This project will result in a fully developed early intervention to support Spanish-speaking Latinx caregivers in promoting positive communication outcomes for their young children with LD. The project will also result in peer-reviewed publications and presentations aimed at enhancing equity in EI and direct community outreach to Latinx families.
ERIC Citations: Find available citations in ERIC for this award here.
Supplemental information
Co-Principal Investigators: Moore, Heather; Feil, Edward
Questions about this project?
To answer additional questions about this project or provide feedback, please contact the program officer.