| 1. |
- Bolic, Vedrana, et al.
(författare)
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Support for learning goes beyond academic support : Voices of students with Asperger’s disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
- 2016
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Ingår i: Autism. - : Sage Publications. - 1362-3613 .- 1461-7005. ; 20:2, s. 183-195
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The purpose of this study was to describe and explore the experiences of support at school among young adults with Asperger’s disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and also to examine what support they, in retrospect, described as influencing learning. Purposive sampling was used to enroll participants. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 13 young adults aged between 20 and 29 years. A qualitative analysis, based on interpreting people’s experiences, was conducted by grouping and searching for patterns in data. The findings indicate that the participants experienced difficulties at school that included academic, social, and emotional conditions, all of which could influence learning. Support for learning included small groups, individualized teaching methods, teachers who cared, and practical and emotional support. These clusters together confirm the overall understanding that support for learning aligns academic and psychosocial support. In conclusion, academic support combined with psychosocial support at school seems to be crucial for learning among students with Asperger’s disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
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| 2. |
- Pahnke, Johan, et al.
(författare)
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Outcomes of an acceptance and commitment therapy-based skills training group for students with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder : A quasi-experimental pilot study
- 2014
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Ingår i: Autism. - : SAGE Publications. - 1362-3613 .- 1461-7005. ; 18:8, s. 953-964
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Autism spectrum disorder is characterized by social impairments and behavioural inflexibility. In this pilot study, the feasibility and outcomes of a 6-week acceptance and commitment therapy-based skills training group were evaluated in a special school setting using a quasi-experimental design (acceptance and commitment therapy/school classes as usual). A total of 28 high-functioning students with autism spectrum disorder (aged 13-21 years) were assessed using self- and teacher-ratings at pre- and post-assessment and 2-month follow-up. All participants completed the skills training, and treatment satisfaction was high. Levels of stress, hyperactivity and emotional distress were reduced in the treatment group. The acceptance and commitment therapy group also reported increased prosocial behaviour. These changes were stable or further improved at the 2-month follow-up. Larger studies are needed to further evaluate the benefits of acceptance and commitment therapy for autism spectrum disorder.
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| 3. |
- Thorup, Emilia, et al.
(författare)
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What are you looking at? : Gaze following with and without target objects in ASD and typical development
- 2022
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Ingår i: Autism. - : Sage Publications. - 1362-3613 .- 1461-7005. ; 26:7, s. 1668-1680
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) display difficulties with response to joint attention in natural settings but often perform comparably to typically developing (TD) children in experimental studies of gaze following. Previous work comparing infants at elevated likelihood for ASD versus TD infants has manipulated aspects of the gaze cueing stimulus (e.g. eyes only versus head and eyes together), but the role the peripheral object being attended to is not known. In this study of infants at elevated likelihood of ASD (N?=?97) and TD infants (N?=?29), we manipulated whether or not a target object was present in the cued area. Performance was assessed at 10, 14, and 18?months, and diagnostic assessment was conducted at age 3 years. The results showed that although infants with later ASD followed gaze to the same extent as TD infants in all conditions, they displayed faster latencies back to the model?s face when (and only when) a peripheral object was absent. These subtle atypicalities in the gaze behaviors directly after gaze following may implicate a different appreciation of the communicative situation in infants with later ASD, despite their ostensively typical gaze following ability.Lay abstractDuring the first year of life, infants start to align their attention with that of other people. This ability is called joint attention and facilitates social learning and language development. Although children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are known to engage less in joint attention compared to other children, several experimental studies have shown that they follow other?s gaze (a requirement for visual joint attention) to the same extent as other children. In this study, infants? eye movements were measured at age 10, 14, and 18?months while watching another person look in a certain direction. A target object was either present or absent in the direction of the other person?s gaze. Some of the infants were at elevated likelihood of ASD, due to having an older autistic sibling. At age 3?years, infants were assessed for a diagnosis of ASD. Results showed that infants who met diagnostic criteria at 3?years followed gaze to the same extent as other infants. However, they then looked back at the model faster than typically developing infants when no target object was present. When a target object was present, there was no difference between groups. These results may be in line with the view that directly after gaze following, infants with later ASD are less influenced by other people?s gaze when processing the common attentional focus. The study adds to our understanding of both the similarities and differences in looking behaviors between infants who later receive an ASD diagnosis and other infants.
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| 4. |
- Tjus, Tomas, 1954, et al.
(författare)
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Gains in Literacy through the Use of a Spcially Developed Multimedia Computer Strategy Positive Findings from 13 Children with Autism
- 1998
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Ingår i: Autism. - : SAGE Publications. - 1362-3613 .- 1461-7005. ; 2:2, s. 139-156
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The present study investigates the use of a specially developed multimedia program for enhancing language and reading development in children with autism. Thirteen children with autism(mean chronological age 9:8 years, mental age 7:3 years and language age 5:2 years) participated in the study. All the children used the program as a supplement to their ordinary reading and language training. A quasi-experimental design that included measures of reading and phonological awareness during baseline, treatment, and follow-up phases was used throughout. Highly significant gains were observed for both reading and phonological awareness during the treatment phase. A significant effect was also observed for phonology at follow-up, but not for reading. A response time index also revealed that reading became more rapid following intervention. It is concluded that the intervention improved reading and language development and that children with autism with various cognitive abilities might benefit from a strategy that combines a motivating multimedia program with focused and positive interactions with the teacher.
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| 5. |
- Tjus, Tomas, 1954, et al.
(författare)
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Interaction patterns between children and their teachers when using a specific multimedia and communication strategy: observations from children with autism and mixed intellectual disabilities.
- 2001
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Ingår i: Autism : the international journal of research and practice. - : SAGE Publications. - 1362-3613 .- 1461-7005. ; 5:2, s. 175-87
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study reports on observed interaction patterns between 20 children with autism and mixed intellectual disabilities (mean chronological age = 11:4 years; language age = 4:7 years) and their nine teachers working with a specially developed multimedia program aiming to increase literacy skills. An increase in verbal expression was found over time for the total group. Children with autism also showed increased enjoyment and willingness to seek help from their teachers. Teachers for both diagnostic groups reduced their instructions on how to handle the computer during the program but the decrease was greater in the teachers for children with autism. When the total group of children was subdivided according to language age (high versus low), it appears that those with a low language age showed an increase in verbal expressiveness from start to end of training. Those with a high language age showed increased enjoyment. It is concluded that more detailed studies of the interaction patterns between teachers and children are needed, and these should be related to children's language level as well as to diagnostic group.
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| 6. |
- Achermann, Sheila, et al.
(författare)
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Motor atypicalities in infancy are associated with general developmental level at 2 years, but not autistic symptoms
- 2020
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Ingår i: Autism. - : SAGE Publications Ltd. - 1362-3613 .- 1461-7005. ; 24:7, s. 1650-1663
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Atypical motor development has frequently been reported in infants at elevated likelihood for autism spectrum disorder. However, no previous study has used detailed motion capture technology to compare infant siblings of children with autism spectrum disorder and infant siblings with no familial history of autism spectrum disorder. We investigated reaching movements during an interceptive action task in 10-month-old infants using kinematic data with high spatiotemporal resolution. The results indicated that several measures were different in infants at elevated likelihood. However, longitudinal analyses revealed that while specific infant motor measures (e.g. number of movement units) were related to broad measures of general developmental level in toddlerhood, the associations with later autism spectrum disorder symptomatology were not significant. These findings confirm that some aspects of motor functioning are atypical in infants at elevated likelihood for autism spectrum disorder, but provide no support for the view that these issues are specifically linked to autism spectrum disorder symptoms, but may rather reflect neurodevelopment more generally.Lay abstractAtypicalities in motor functioning are often observed in later born infant siblings of children with autism spectrum disorder. The goal of our study was to investigate motor functioning in infants with and without familial history of autism spectrum disorder. Specifically, we investigated how infants catch a ball that is rolling toward them following a non-straight path, a task that requires both efficient planning and execution. Their performance was measured using detailed three-dimensional motion capture technology. We found that several early motor functioning measures were different in infants with an older autistic sibling compared to controls. However, these early motor measures were not related to autistic symptoms at the age of 2 years. Instead, we found that some of the early motor measures were related to their subsequent non-social, general development. The findings of our study help us understand motor functioning early in life and how motor functioning is related to other aspects of development.
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| 7. |
- Arnell, Susann, 1971-, et al.
(författare)
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Parents’ perceptions and concerns about physical activity participation among adolescents with autism spectrum disorder
- 2020
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Ingår i: Autism. - : Sage Publications. - 1362-3613 .- 1461-7005. ; 24:8, s. 2243-2255
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The parents of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder have a vital and proactive role in encouraging healthy physical activity habits, and they possess important knowledge about the adolescents’ needs when it comes to enhancing participation in physical activity. But promoting healthy physical activity habits in adolescents can be difficult. The purpose of this study was thus to describe parents’ perceptions of their adolescent child’s participation in physical activity and to describe the parental role in promoting such participation. Twenty-eight parents of adolescents aged 12–16 years with autism spectrum disorder were interviewed. The interviews were analyzed using an inductive content analysis approach. The parents described how challenging participation in physical activities could be for their adolescents. Despite this, they wanted to see their children participate more in physical activity but found the promotion of physical activity to be an overwhelming task that was difficult to cope with on their own. The results reveal a need for support and collaborative efforts among different actors to give these issues increased priority in order to promote the adolescents’ physical activity participation.
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| 8. |
- Bertilsdotter Rosqvist, Hanna, 1976-, et al.
(författare)
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Cutting our own keys : New possibilities of neurodivergent storying in research
- 2023
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Ingår i: Autism. - : Sage Publications. - 1362-3613 .- 1461-7005. ; 27:5, s. 1235-1244
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A lot of people who do research are also neurodivergent (such as being autistic or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), but neurodivergent people do not always feel welcome in research spaces which are often shaped around neurotypical people. Some neurotypical researchers lack confidence in talking to neurodivergent people, and others feel like neurodivergent people might not be able to do good research about other people who are like them without being biased. We think it is important that all researchers are able to work well together, regardless of whether they are neurotypical, autistic, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (or any other neurotype) – in truly ‘neurodiverse’ teams. In this article we talk about how to create better spaces for all researchers, where we feel valued for who we are and take each others’ needs into account. We do this using some approaches from other areas of research and talking about how they relate to our personal experiences of being neurodivergent researchers with our own personal stories. This article adds to a growing work on how we can work with people who are different from us, in more respectful and kind ways.
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| 9. |
- Bölte, Sven, et al.
(författare)
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The Gestalt of functioning in autism spectrum disorder : Results of the international conference to develop final consensus International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health core sets
- 2019
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Ingår i: Autism. - : Sage Publications. - 1362-3613 .- 1461-7005. ; 23:2, s. 449-467
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Autism spectrum disorder is associated with diverse social, educational, and occupational challenges. To date, no standardized, internationally accepted tools exist to assess autism spectrum disorder–related functioning. World Health Organization’s International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health can serve as foundation for developing such tools. This study aimed to identify a comprehensive, a common brief, and three age-appropriate brief autism spectrum disorder Core Sets. Four international preparatory studies yielded in total 164 second-level International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health candidate categories. Based on this evidence, 20 international autism spectrum disorder experts applied an established iterative decision-making consensus process to select from the candidate categories the most relevant ones to constitute the autism spectrum disorder Core Sets. The consensus process generated 111 second-level International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health categories in the Comprehensive Core Set for autism spectrum disorder—one body structure, 20 body functions, 59 activities and participation categories, and 31 environmental factors. The Common Brief Core Set comprised 60 categories, while the age-appropriate core sets included 73 categories in the preschool version (0- to 5-year-old children), 81 in the school-age version (6- to 16-year-old children and adolescents), and 79 in the older adolescent and adult version (⩾17-year-old individuals). The autism spectrum disorder Core Sets mark a milestone toward the standardized assessment of autism spectrum disorder–related functioning in educational, administrative, clinical, and research settings.
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| 10. |
- Callenmark, Björn, et al.
(författare)
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Explicit versus implicit social cognition testing in autism spectrum disorder
- 2014
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Ingår i: Autism. - : Sage Publications. - 1362-3613 .- 1461-7005. ; 18:6, s. 684-693
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although autism spectrum disorder is defined by reciprocal social-communication impairments, several studies have found no evidence for altered social cognition test performance. This study examined explicit (i.e. prompted) and implicit (i.e. spontaneous) variants of social cognition testing in autism spectrum disorder. A sample of 19 adolescents with autism spectrum disorder and 19 carefully matched typically developing controls completed the Dewey Story Test. ‘Explicit’ (multiple-choice answering format) and ‘implicit’ (free interview) measures of social cognition were obtained. Autism spectrum disorder participants did not differ from controls regarding explicit social cognition performance. However, the autism spectrum disorder group performed more poorly than controls on implicit social cognition performance in terms of spontaneous perspective taking and social awareness. Findings suggest that social cognition alterations in autism spectrum disorder are primarily implicit in nature and that an apparent absence of social cognition difficulties on certain tests using rather explicit testing formats does not necessarily mean social cognition typicality in autism spectrum disorder.
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