A case study of the use of a structured teaching approach in adults with autism in a residential home in Greece.

In November 2001, the Greek Society for the Protection of Autistic People (GSPAP) established the first residence for people with autism in Greece, following the guidelines of structured teaching and the TEACCH method with all 12 of the residents. Using interview questionnaires and systematic naturalistic observations, this case study explored the effectiveness of the training programme in the residence for the 12 adolescents and adults with autism, who had never received any other intervention or training. The instruments used for the evaluation were the Childhood Autism Rating Scale, the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales and structured observations. The categories evaluated were personal independence, social abilities and functional communication. After a period of 6 months the results showed significant progress in these three areas of functioning for all of the residents. The implications of the results in particular for further research and service development in Greece are discussed.