The Effectiveness of Neurofeedback Training for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Franziska Eller investigated the effectiveness of individualized Neurofeedback training in addition to a comprehensive basic neurodevelopmental therapy for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). The results clearly speak for the benefits of a supplemental Neurofeedback training, since QEEG recordings revealed positive changes in the children's brain wave activity after only a few weeks of training. Furthermore behavioral aspects and imitation abilities were assessed using two autism questionnaires and an imitation test. Results showed that all children improved in several domains, with the treatment group partly achieving greater changes than the control group. Unlike the most prevalent therapy methods that are mainly behavior-based, Neurofeedback training aims at improving abnormal brain wave activity and thereby establishes an alternative, promising approach to treat Autism Spectrum Disorders.