In this issue of the American Journal of Occupational Therapy, the project leaders, including Marian Arbesman, Deborah Lieberman, and myself are pleased to present five systematic review articles that examine the effectiveness of early childhood interventions used by occupational therapy practitioners. Occupational therapists have a long history of working with infants and young children with disabilities and developmental delays and have had leadership roles in providing interventions to children across hospital, home, community, and school settings. The profession’s emphasis on family-centered approaches; expertise in how to promote children’s play and functional performance; and focus on the interactions among children, their occupations, and their environments position occupational therapists as vital members of early intervention teams.
Initially, the education laws for children with disabilities did not include infants and toddlers. When the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (Pub. L. 94–142, which later became the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act of 1990...
