About

Meagan Talbott is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the UC Davis Medical Center. She completed her undergraduate education in Psychology at UC Davis and earned her PhD in Psychology from Boston University in 2014. Her graduate training focused on language and communication development in infants and young children, including autistic toddlers and their younger infant siblings. She returned to UC Davis as a postdoctoral fellow at the MIND Institute to learn more about early interventions for families supporting children's early development. Her research over the past several years has concentrated on adapting laboratory- and clinic-based assessments and family supports for telehealth, aiming to reach more families outside of university settings. Her long-term goals include connecting families with existing services more rapidly and developing new supports for families with early developmental concerns. Her work is interdisciplinary, and she collaborates with students and colleagues at UC Davis and the MIND Institute.

Research topics

• Psychology
• Clinical psychology
• Psychiatry
• Medicine
• Computer Science
• Nursing
• Developmental psychology
• Business

Selected publications

• 224 Caregiver Perspectives on Telehealth Assessment and Other Supports for Infants with Early Developmental Concerns

  Journal of Clinical and Translational Science · 2024-04-01

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Caregivers often identify signs of autism in infancy but face multiple barriers when seeking specialized evaluations and subsequent services. This study sought to understand the experiences of families with early developmental concerns to identify acceptable and feasible strategies to support them during this period of uncertainty. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: We interviewed 15 families participating in a larger longitudinal project developing telehealth assessments for infants with early developmental concerns. Interviews were conducted virtually following the final toddler-age assessment, and focused on caregivers’ experiences navigating early concerns, appropriateness of existing supports, and suggestions for future directions. Interviews were transcribed and coded across multiple passes, focusing on both phenomenological experience and frequency of specific supports mentioned. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Core themes expressed across multiple included: (1) Uncertainty; (2) Navigating Supports; (3) Community and Connection; and (4) Information is Power. Caregivers also provided specific suggestions for addressing these areas. These included suggestions for parent coaching topics, modalities for sharing information with parents (e.g., group meetings, online modules), and research practices. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: There have been recent efforts to develop pre-diagnostic interventions for infants, but few studies have investigated the needs and priorities of families during this period. Our approach can help bridge the gap between research and practice by identifying family priorities to target when developing interventions.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Caregiver Perspectives on Telehealth Assessment and Other Supports for Infants with Early Developmental Concerns

  Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders · 2024-07-27 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  This study examined the experiences of families of children with developmental concerns in the first year of life, before formal diagnostic evaluations are typically conducted. We aimed to understand the impact of participation in a telehealth-based research evaluation in infancy, identify existing community-based supports perceived favorably by caregivers, and identify suggestions for future directions. Participants were recruited from an prior study evaluating a telehealth assessment for infants with early social communication delays. Here, we interviewed caregivers (n = 19) who participated in follow-up study in toddlerhood. Transcripts from the semi-structured interviews were transcribed and analyzed using both inductive thematic and content coding approaches. Analysis of these interviews resulted in four core themes describing caregiving during this time: (1) Caregivers felt lonely, overwhelmed, and dismissed by providers, leading to feelings of uncertainty about their child's development and future; (2) Telehealth assessments were appreciated because external supports are minimal, complex to navigate, and do not address all areas of need; (3) Desire for additional community and connection; and (4) Information is power. Caregivers reported participating in the telehealth assessments helped them to feel reassured, validated and supported. Outside the study, they sought a wide variety of services and resources. The most frequent requests were for parent coaching sessions and family navigation. Caregivers experienced uncertainty and disempowerment during the pre-diagnostic period and sought education and guidance during this time. Findings reflect the importance of centering family priorities when developing early intervention services for infants with elevated likelihood of autism.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Can combining existing behavioral tools improve identification of infants at elevated likelihood of autism in the first year of life?

  Autism · 2024-09-12 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Identifying infants at elevated likelihood for autism and other developmental differences in the first year of life remains a significant challenge. This study explored associations between behavioral differences in infancy and developmental outcomes in toddlerhood. We conducted a secondary data analysis of 256 infants with an older autistic sibling followed from 6 to 36 months of age. We defined conceptually driven cutoffs for three behavioral measures collected at 6, 9, and 12 months and examined the utility of these measures, individually and in combination, in predicting 36-month outcome classification (typical development or developmental concerns, including autism). Overall, relatively few infants met multiple measure definitions (range: 5 to 43 infants across ages). However, infants meeting multiple definitions had a higher likelihood of developmental concerns outcomes at all ages. Positive predictive values for meeting all three measure definitions combined ranged from 0.67 [0.22, 0.96] at 6 months to 0.95 [0.75, 1.0] at 12 months. These findings suggest that while majority of infants ultimately classified with developmental concerns do not show significant behavioral differences in the first year, when early differences are present, they have predictive value. Combining behavioral tools may help to improve identification of infants most in need of early supports. Lay abstract Many families have concerns about their infants’ development in the first year of life. Current screeners cannot tell whether these differences might be related to autism, developmental delays, or likely to resolve on their own. As a result, many families are told to “wait and see.” In this study, we looked at whether combining multiple behavior measures can improve prediction of outcomes in toddlerhood. This could help to provide families with more information about the significance of early behavioral differences. We assessed 256 infants with an older autistic sibling at 6, 9, and 12 months. We created three markers of behavioral differences at these ages. We looked at whether infants who had two or more markers were more likely to be on the autism spectrum or have other developmental differences than to have typically developing outcomes at 36 months. We found that very few infants had more than one marker at any age. However, infants who showed two or more markers were more likely to be on the spectrum or have other developmental differences at 36 months than infants who showed only one marker. These findings suggest that when behavioral differences are present on multiple measures, there is no need to wait and see before referring for services.

  PublisherDOI

• Assessment Fidelity of Parents Implementing a Standardized Telehealth Infant Autism Screener

  OTJR Occupational Therapy Journal of Research · 2023-04-23 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  Telehealth is effective for service delivery in pediatric occupational therapy across ages and diagnoses. Remote parent coaching provides unique benefits for both parents and infants. As a result of COVID-19, practitioners and researchers pivoted to remote assessment and intervention without much preparation or training. It is critical that we evaluate the quality of these telehealth services. One important component of remote evaluations is assessment fidelity. To examine assessment fidelity of a telehealth-delivered observational autism screening tool for infants. An assessment fidelity checklist was applied as the primary outcome measure. Parents conducted assessments with 82% adherence to the fidelity checklist. Implications: A parent coaching telehealth approach may be valid for assessment in pediatric telehealth. Continually monitoring the assessment fidelity of a tool is critical for the valid administration of remote services.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Adaptation of in-person curriculum tools for remote assessment of infants and toddlers with social communication concerns in community-based settings

  International review of research in developmental disabilities · 2023-01-01

  book-chapter1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Feasibility of delivering parent-implemented NDBI interventions in low-resource regions: a pilot randomized controlled study

  Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders · 2022 · 72 citations

  • Computer Science
  • Psychology
  • Clinical psychology

  BACKGROUND: This implementation feasibility study was conducted to determine whether an evidence-based parent-implemented distance-learning intervention model for young children at high likelihood of having ASD could be implemented at fidelity by Part C community providers and by parents in low-resource communities. METHODS: The study used a community-academic partnership model to adapt an evidence-based intervention tested in the current pilot trial involving randomization by agency in four states and enrollment of 35 coaches and 34 parent-family dyads. After baseline data were gathered, providers in the experimental group received 12-15 h of training while control providers received six webinars on early development. Providers delivered 6 months of intervention with children-families, concluding with data collection. Regression analyses were used to model outcomes of the coach behaviors, the parent fidelity ratings, and child outcomes. RESULTS: and F-statistic. As hypothesized, results demonstrated significant gains in (1) experimental provider fidelity of coaching implementation compared to the control group; and (2) experimental parent fidelity of implementation compared to the control group. There were no significant differences between groups on child developmental scores. CONCLUSIONS: Even though the experimental parent group averaged less than 30 min of intervention weekly with providers in the 6 months, both providers and parents demonstrated statistically significant gains on the fidelity of implementation scores with moderate effect sizes compared to control groups. Since child changes in parent-mediated models are dependent upon the parents' ability to deliver the intervention, and since parent delivery is dependent upon providers who are coaching the parents, these results demonstrated that two of these three links of the chain were positively affected by the experimental implementation model. However, a lack of significant differences in child group gains suggests that further work is needed on this model. Factors to consider include the amount of contact with the provider, the amount of practice children experience, the amount of contact both providers and parents spend on training materials, and motivational strategies for parents, among others. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registry of Efficacy and Effectiveness Studies: #4360, registered 1xx, October, 2020 - Retrospectively registered, https://sreereg.icpsr.umich.edu/sreereg/.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Short report: Experiences of Caregivers Participating in a Telehealth Evaluation of Development for Infants (TEDI)

  Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders · 2022-08-09 · 5 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  A growing literature supports the feasibility and validity of telehealth-based assessments for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Better understanding families' experiences is crucial for sustained use beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. This study qualitatively examines caregiver experiences with the Telehealth Evaluation of Development for Infants (TEDI) protocol to better understand benefits and challenges of telehealth-based evaluations. Caregivers (N = 32) completed an online survey following a telehealth-based evaluation with their 6-12 month-old infants. Open-ended text responses to queries about perceived benefits, challenges, and suggestions for future adaptations were coded. Most caregivers reported positive experiences with minor feedback relating to tailoring of individual needs. Responses suggest the TEDI is a feasible approach and provide guidance for components of successful telehealth evaluations more broadly.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Leveraging telehealth to evaluate infants with prodromal autism spectrum disorder characteristics using the telehealth evaluation of development for infants

  Autism · 2021-09-22 · 19 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  This study investigated the feasibility of recruiting and assessing infants with prodromal autism characteristics in the first year of life via telehealth. Participants included 41 infants (Mage = 10.51 months, 51.2% female, 80.5% White) whose parents had concerns about social communication delays or autism. All infants met concerns criteria on a social communication screener. Infants were subsequently assessed via telehealth using the Telehealth Evaluation of Development for Infants protocol, wherein parents are coached through a series of semi-structured interactions from which key measures of autism characteristics, communication, developmental level, and clinical best estimates of autism spectrum disorder likelihood are scored. Parents completed online questionnaires and surveys measuring the acceptability of the telehealth visits. Across both parent report and examiner-derived measures, infants demonstrated high scores on measures of purported autism traits, decreased communication skills, and delayed achievement of developmental milestones. Caregivers’ acceptability ratings were uniformly positive. Results highlight the potential for telehealth to expand the scope of studies of emerging autism beyond infant sibling designs and to increase families’ access to early evaluation services. Lay abstract Many families seeking early evaluations for autism spectrum disorder face long waitlists, must often travel to centers with appropriate expertise, and are frequently told by providers to “wait and see.” This results in significant stress for families and delayed supports to infants and their caregivers who could benefit. This study evaluated whether telehealth could be used to identify and evaluate infants with early autism spectrum disorder characteristics in the first year of life. In this study, we evaluated 41 infants via telehealth using a standard set of probes and scored behavior related to social communication, play, imitation, and other developmental domains. We found the majority of infants demonstrated elevated likelihood of autism spectrum disorder on both parent-reported questionnaires and examiner-rated behavior. Caregiver ratings of the overall utility of the protocol used in this study were high. Overall, this study demonstrates the feasibility for telehealth-based approaches to evaluate infants’ with elevated likelihood of autism spectrum disorder in the first year of life, which could help to improve families’ access to care and to expand our capacity to conduct studies evaluating possible intervention supports.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Examining US Public Early Intervention for Toddlers With Autism: Characterizing Services and Readiness for Evidence-Based Practice Implementation

  Frontiers in Psychiatry · 2021 · 29 citations

  • Psychology
  • Medicine
  • Clinical psychology

  in addressing most needs of children with ASD. They reported the most difficulty addressing eating, sleeping, family stress, and stereotyped behaviors. Data indicate that children from families with higher income received significantly higher service intensity. While administrators and providers reported high rates of high-quality caregiver coaching (>60%), caregivers reported low rates (23%). Direct providers with more favorable attitudes toward EBP had greater EBP use. In turn, provider attitudes toward EBP were significantly associated with implementation leadership and culture at their agency. Results suggest that publicly funded early intervention programs in the US require additional resources and training for providers and leaders to support improved implementation climate and attitudes toward ASD EBPs. Results also suggest that more state system support is needed to increase use of ASD-specific EBP use, including high-quality caregiver coaching, to better serve toddlers with ASD. Recommendations for implementation strategies are addressed.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Feasibility of Delivering Parent-Implemented NDBI Interventions in Low Resource Regions: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Study

  Research Square · 2020-11-17 · 10 citations

  preprintOpen access
  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• Development of a Telehealth Screener and Assessment for Infants at-risk for ASD in Diverse Communities.

  NIH · $432k · 2019–2022

Frequent coauthors

• Sally J. Rogers

  University of California, Davis

  11 shared

• Charles A. Nelson

  Harvard University

  8 shared

• Annette Estes

  University of Washington

  7 shared

• Sarah Dufek

  6 shared

• Helen Tager‐Flusberg

  Vanderbilt University

  5 shared

• Gregory S. Young

  UC Davis Health System

  5 shared

• Géraldine Dawson

  Center for Autism and Related Disorders

  5 shared

• Jeff Munson

  University of Washington

  5 shared

Education

• Postdoctoral Scholar (funded by NARSAD Young Investigator), Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

  UC Davis Health

  2019

• Postdoctoral Fellow, Autism Research Training Program (ARTP), Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences; MIND Institute

  UC Davis Health

  2016

• Ph.D., Psychology

  Boston University

  2014

• B.S., Psychology

  University of California Davis

  2007