Sensory Integrative Therapy and Autism Ranking:

Future Research

Summary of Existing Research

There is a very small amount of high quality research evidence (five group studies) and a small amount of low quality research (seven single-case design studies with three or more participants) into the use of sensory integrative therapy for autistic children and young people. There is one, very small single-case design study which looked at autistic adults.

This research is inconclusive, with some studies finding positive results and some studies finding limited or no results. Because of this we cannot determine if sensory integrative therapy provides any benefits to autistic individuals.

Recommendations for Future Research

There is a need for more research into sensory integrative therapy for autistic people. That research should

• Use scientifically robust, experimental methodologies with larger numbers of more diverse participants (such as adults, females, and people from ethnic minorities).
• Investigate whether sensory integrative therapy is more or less effective than other interventions designed to reduce or overcome sensory difficulties (such as weighted blankets or therapy balls). 
• Investigate whether specific individuals on the autism spectrum are more likely to benefit from sensory integrative therapy than other individuals on the spectrum.
• Provide more details about the participants, such as whether they had a formal diagnosis of autism, their intellectual ability etc., as well the type of sensory difficulties they had.
• Provide detailed information about the intervention, including how closely it followed the principles and protocols for sensory integrative therapy established by Parham et al (2010).
• Use robust, standardised outcome measures for sensory integration (such as the Sensory Integration and Praxis Test) and for functional skills (such as the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales).
• Provide adequate statistical reporting and analysis of the results (such as tables comparing outcome data for the experimental intervention with the control intervention and contrasting this with baseline data).
• Identify if sensory integrative therapy has any beneficial effects on sensory integration and functional skills in the medium to long term.
• Involve autistic people in the design, development and evaluation of those studies

Updated

16 Jun 2022

Last Review

01 Apr 2018

Next Review

01 May 2024