Adapting and pretesting the World Health Organization's Caregiver Skills Training Program for children with autism and developmental disorders or delays in Hong Kong.

The World Health Organization Caregiver Skills Training Program (WHO-CST) was developed to strengthen caregivers' skills in supporting children with developmental delays and the caregivers' well-being. The WHO-CST Hong Kong (HK) was adapted, and pre-pilot tested to support families with children suspected of having developmental delays and autism spectrum disorder and to empower the caregivers to foster their children's learning, social communication, and adaptive behavior. A sequential mixed-methods research methodology was undertaken to examine the adaptation process and initial implementation experiences. The acceptability, feasibility, and perceived benefits of the WHO-CST were assessed using stakeholders' and caregivers' qualitative and caregivers' quantitative pre- and post-intervention feedback. The data included materials generated from (1) three consultation meetings with stakeholders; (2) detailed reviews of the translated and adapted WHO-CST materials by master trainees (n = 10) trained by the WHO-CST representatives; (3) needs assessment focus group interviews with caregivers (n = 15) of children with autism spectrum disorder; and (4) pre- and post-CST program qualitative focus group interviews and quantitative evaluation. Consultation with stakeholders suggested that the program was acceptable for the local community, but the home visit and fidelity components were initially considered to be challenges towards the feasibility and sustainability of the program. Caregivers in the needs assessment focus groups gave widely diverse views about the program's uniqueness, length, delivery mode, and the inclusion of videotaping in-home visits. Post-intervention comments by caregivers about the program were mainly positive, while the MTs were critical of the content and length of the training and fidelity process. As one of the first high-income locations to adopt the WHO-CST, the evaluation findings of the WHO-CST-HK indicate that it is feasible and acceptable to implement the program in a metropolitan area where families have busy work schedules and are very conscious of privacy issues. The study results suggest that the WHO-CST program in HK and other high-income countries require scaling up and further evaluation of its implementation in real community settings. This involves systemic and contextual changes to allow task-sharing between professionals and non-specialists at the macro level. Furthermore, technology should be used to support the supervision of non-specialists. In addition, easier access to the WHO-CST materials at the micro level is required to ensure equity, equality, diversity, and inclusion of diversified families of children with developmental delays.

The Resilience of Social Service Providers and Families of Children With Autism or Development Delays During the COVID-19 Pandemic-A Community Case Study in Hong Kong.

Background: Hong Kong is one of the earliest cities to have hampered by the COVID-19. When preventive public health measures are enforced, specific groups, who have already been facing inequality before the outbreak, are likely to become more overlooked and vulnerable. Aim: This community case study aims to describe the additional needs of families of children with autism spectrum disorder and other developmental issues, as well as unexpected difficulties and challenges social service professionals encountered when delivering service and their solutions toward these challenges. Methods: A focus group with 10 professionals providing the Caregiver Skills Training Program was conducted. Results: Poor families of vulnerable children were found to be challenged, more than average, in finding daily necessities during the initial stage of the outbreak. Most vulnerable children displayed additional problematic behaviors and emotional problems during the quarantine. The social service professionals addressed the family needs by providing tangible resources and offering online training, workshops, and programs to meet their needs. Several important lessons were learned. First, technology know-how on conducting online training, workshop, and program could be a challenge to some social service professionals and the parents. Second, the professionals reported that they made huge efforts to produce guidelines in protecting services users' privacy, to equip themselves with necessary skills in executing privacy-protection measures, and to keep exploring for safer alternatives. Third, providing tele-services in online mode represented a different interaction pattern between social service professionals and service users, especially in the recruitment processes and group dynamics. Conclusion: In comparison with other cities, Hong Kong has responded to the COVID-19 efficiently and effectively based on the citizen's strict adherence to behavioral advice and the innovative altruistic efforts from the multi-sectors in the community.

A methodological critique of parenting research in Hong Kong.

This paper attempts to examine methodological issues pertinent to parenting research in Hong Kong. Using 90 studies indexed in the PsycINFO database, eight methodological limitations of parenting research in Hong Kong are highlighted. The limitations include over-reliance on non-locally validated translated measurements, lack of longitudinal studies, infrequent utilization of perspectives based on multiple informants, lack of usage of multiple indicators of different parenting processes, infrequent use of advanced statistical data analysis methods, underuse of linear mixed method analyses, predominance of convenience sampling, and lack of qualitative studies. Future research directions with reference to these methodological limitations are discussed.

A conceptual critique of parenting research in Hong Kong.

Parenting processes have been investigated for over 30 years in Hong Kong. Three conceptual limitations are identified, based on 90 studies selected from the PsycINFO database: lack of investigation of indigenous parenting concepts; lack of investigation of causes, concomitants and consequences of the parenting process; and lack of alternative explanations for results. Suggestions for improvement are also made in each area. Limitations of the present study are discussed.