Implementing Reciprocal Imitation Teaching in Part C Early Intervention During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Randomized Comparative Effectiveness Trial Examining Provider Outcomes

Naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions (NDBIs) have been found to improve social communication in autistic toddlers but are often inaccessible to families. Reciprocal imitation teaching (RIT) is an NDBI shown to enhance toddlers’ social, language, and behavioral development. This randomized comparative effectiveness trial was conducted within Part C early intervention (EI) settings during the COVID-19 pandemic, with all procedures conducted remotely. EI providers were randomly assigned to either RIT training ( n = 28) or a comparator condition designed to increase children’s participation in daily home routines ( n = 28). Providers completed surveys from pre-training to 12 months post-training to assess feasibility, adoption, sustainability, self-efficacy, and perceived effectiveness of their respective conditions. Exploratory analyses revealed that while RIT providers reported using their assigned intervention with a higher proportion of toddlers in their caseloads, both conditions reported sustained use over time and rated their approaches as feasible and effective, with their self-efficacy improving over a 1-year period.