Effectiveness of the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) on Communication & Speech for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Meta-Analysis

American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology

Flippin, M., Reszka, S., et al. (2010).

American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 19(2), 178-195.

This meta-analysis investigates the effects of the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) on communication and speech outcomes in children on the autism spectrum.

Not stated

1994-2009

Single-subject design studies; group studies

11

Results demonstrated that the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) has small to moderate effects for improving communication skills, suggesting that PECS has promising effectiveness in improving communication outcomes in children with autism spectrum disorder. For the single-subject experiments, the mean weighted ES was 0.51; effect size could not be calculated for group design studies. Spoken language outcomes varied across both study design types. Findings also suggested PECS may be beneficial, at least in short-term effects, in promoting speech in children with a specific developmental profile (i.e., low joint attention, low motor imitation, high object exploration). There was limited evidence that the verbal modeling, time delay, or some other factor associated with Phase IV of PECS may play a role in the acquisition of spontaneous speech. Further research is needed to investigate the maintenance and generalization of gains and to identify the child characteristics that may influence treatment outcomes.