A curated starting point for individuals, families, advocates and referral partners looking for trustworthy information about rights, person-centered planning, daily living skills, independence and community participation.
Government and advocacy links explain California systems and rights. Research cards summarize peer-reviewed studies and link to the original record.
California’s Adaptive Skills Training service category is a service-system term. Peer-reviewed research more often studies related components and models—daily living skills instruction, functional training, self-management, prompting, caregiver-implemented teaching, active support, and person-centered participation. The studies below are therefore related evidence, not proof that every service or provider will produce the same result.
Selected recent trials, systematic reviews and meta-analyses. Summaries are intentionally cautious and link to the original research.
A randomized trial found significantly greater gains in overall daily living skills and domestic skills, including cooking, laundry and money-management goals, for participants receiving the targeted daily-living intervention compared with control.
Read on PubMed ↗A review identified 38 studies. Among 21 high-quality experiments, 86% showed improvements in daily living skills. Prompting, reinforcement and task analysis were common intervention components, with some evidence of generalization and maintenance.
Read on PubMed ↗Across 14 single-case studies used for effect-size analysis, self-management interventions showed a very large aggregated Tau-U effect and a moderate aggregated performance-criteria effect. The authors still called for newer, more rigorous research—especially for community-living skills.
Read the open-access article ↗A systematic review of 16 peer-reviewed studies found video prompting effective across functional, work and other skills; daily living and vocational skills were among the most common targets. The review also reported maintenance and generalization benefits across the included literature.
View article record ↗A cluster randomized trial reported significant effects on independence and well-being subscales and a larger increase in social activity engagement for adults receiving Active Support. Not every outcome changed, which is important when interpreting the findings.
Read on PubMed ↗An umbrella review found three broad approaches associated with better participation: identifying meaningful opportunities, providing participation opportunities, and building the skills and capacity needed to take part. The authors also noted that much of the underlying review evidence was low to moderate quality.
Read on PubMed ↗In a pilot randomized trial with autistic adults ages 18–38, participants in the ACCESS program improved in caregiver-rated adaptive and self-determination skills compared with waitlist controls, alongside gains in perceived coping support.
Read on PubMed ↗A review of 24 studies found functional training—often using video modeling or prompting—was the most frequently and effectively used approach for improving everyday performance, while noting important gaps for older adults and people with more significant support needs.
Read on PubMed ↗Use these sources for current rules, appeals, planning and advocacy. Rights information can change, so official pages should be checked for the latest version.
California Department of Developmental Services materials summarizing rights under the Lanterman Act.
Official resource ↗ Disability Rights CaliforniaRights Under the Lanterman ActA detailed plain-language manual covering eligibility, IPPs, adult community living, work, appeals and complaints.
Advocacy guide ↗ OCRAOffice of Clients’ Rights AdvocacyFree legal information, advice and representation for regional-center clients throughout California.
Get advocacy help ↗ DDSEligibility & service appealsCurrent California information about appealing regional-center decisions about eligibility or services.
Appeals information ↗ California CRDDisability civil rightsState enforcement and guidance for disability discrimination and reasonable accommodations in employment, housing and other covered areas.
State civil-rights resource ↗ California lawWelfare & Institutions Code §4502The statutory Persons With Developmental Disabilities Bill of Rights, including dignity, choice, community participation and freedom from harm.
Read the statute ↗A current overview of California’s regional-center system, eligibility, rights and resources for people age 3 through adulthood.
Person-centered IPP guides, workbooks, videos and information about the standardized IPP format.
Disability Rights California’s practical booklet for preparing for an IPP meeting and understanding disagreement/appeal options.
State information about the voluntary service-delivery model that gives eligible participants more control over services, supports and providers.
Local information about person-centered planning and service categories for adults in Sonoma, Napa and Solano counties.
Local orientation, enrollment and person-centered-planning information for the Self-Determination Program.
Families can bring questions, preferences, concerns and evidence to the planning process. The individual’s own goals, communication, culture, safety and desired life outcomes remain central.
