ABSTRACT
Since the first edition of this book in 2006, the concept of using cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) techniques with children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) has gained popularity in terms of available techniques and research. Children and adolescents with ASD, by definition, exhibit social impairments, which occur concurrently with deficits in expressive and/or receptive verbal and nonverbal language and the presentation of perseverative behaviors and a restrictive pattern of interests (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). These behaviors all present a need for intervention, and may be targeted by speech/language therapy, occupational therapy, classroommanagement systems, and social-skills training, to name a few. For ASD, each “symptom” is typically treated by differing types of intervention, which requires comprehensive evaluations of the problem behaviors and careful treatment planning. Of the symptoms present, cognitive-behavioral therapy has been used to help in the areas of improving social skills, enhancing perspective-taking, increasing self-monitoring behaviors, and reducing comorbid symptoms of internalizing disorders, specifically anxiety (Anderson & Morris, 2006; Cardaciotto & Herbert, 2004; Donoghue, Stallard, & Kucia, 2011; Sofronoff, Attwood, & Hinton, 2005; Sofronoff, Attwood, Hinton, & Levin, 2007; Sze & Wood, 2007; White, Ollendick, Scahill, Oswald, & Albano, 2009; Wood et al., 2009).
