Reactive Attachment Disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorder: Diagnosis and Care in a Cultural Context

2018 ◽  
pp. 149-160
Author(s):  
Jorge Benavides-Rawson ◽  
Roy Richard Grinker
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
Reactive Attachment Disorder ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Attachment Disorder ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder Diagnosis ◽  
Reactive Attachment

scholarly journals Revisiting the case for ‘feral’ humans under the light of the human self-domestication hypothesis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amy Niego ◽  
Antonio Benítez-Burraco
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Reactive Attachment Disorder ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Functional Language ◽  
Language Deficits ◽  
Evolution Of Language ◽  
Attachment Disorder ◽  
Feral Children ◽  
Reactive Attachment ◽  
Partial Reversion

Historically, some cases of ‘feral’ children have been reported. Contemporary descriptions generally preclude any insightful inference about the nature and the extent of the language deficits exhibited by these children, as well as the ultimate causes of their problems with language. However, they have been regularly used to support the view that language acquisition requires a proper social environment in order to occur. In this paper, we revisit the case for ‘feral’ children with the viewpoint that human evolution entailed a process of self-domestication that parallels what we find in domesticated animals. Because feralization commonly occurs in nature and because it entails a partial reversion of features of domestication, this self-domestication approach to the evolution of language reassesses the case for ‘feral’ children, particularly when compared with present-day conditions involving abnormal patterns of socialization, whether they are genetically-triggered as in autism spectrum disorder, or environmentally-triggered, as in reactive attachment disorder. Overall, the structural and functional language deficits observed in these human groups emerge as useful proxies for previous stages in the evolution of language(s) under the influence of human self-domestication.

Listening to Bedouin fathers of children with autism spectrum disorder

2018 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 345-358 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iris Manor-Binyamini
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Support Services ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Raising Children ◽  
Cultural Perspectives ◽  
Children With Asd

Although children across the world experience autism spectrum disorder (ASD), most research on ASD has been conducted using Western cultural perspectives and has focused primarily on mothers, leaving significant gaps in the literature. This study aimed to address these gaps by exploring the experiences of fathers raising children with ASD in a Bedouin community. To this end, a sample of 19 fathers of children (aged 6–15 years) with ASD living in recognized and unrecognized Bedouin settlements in the Negev participated in ethnographic, semi-structured interviews designed to investigate their experiences with raising a child with ASD in their community. Two major themes emerged: the challenges that Bedouin fathers of children with ASD face, and the influence of socio-demographic and cultural characteristics on their experience. Findings reflect the complex experiences of fathers raising children with ASD in the Bedouin community, stemming from their socio-cultural context and the limited knowledge and support services that are available in the community for these children. This article concludes with recommendations on how to enhance professional sensitivity and provide more culturally tailored services for parents of children with ASD.

Attachment disorder in autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 57-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arvid Nikolai Kildahl ◽  
Maria Hagen Engebretsen ◽  
Sissel Berge Helverschou
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Intellectual Disability ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Exclusion Criterion ◽  
Challenging Behaviour ◽  
Attachment Disorders ◽  
Attachment Disorder ◽  
Case Study Methodology ◽  
Content Type

PurposeAutism spectrum disorder (ASD) is an exclusion criterion for one of the two attachment disorders in the DSM 5. However, previous findings indicate that ASD and attachment disorder are unrelated conditions and may co-occur. The purpose of this paper is to explore the diagnostic assessment of an adolescent male with ASD, intellectual disability (ID), severe challenging behaviour and a suspected attachment disorder.Design/methodology/approachCase study methodology was chosen because of its suitability in the exploration of complex clinical phenomena where prior knowledge is sparse.FindingsIt was possible to identify symptoms of attachment disorder in a case involving ASD, ID, anxiety and severe challenging behaviour. The Disturbances of Attachment Interview was particularly useful in this assessment, as was assessment of ASD symptoms and developmental history. Differentiating the two attachment disorders proved challenging.Research limitations/implicationsThere is a need for further research in ASD and attachment disorders not limited by current diagnostic categories.Practical implicationsCo-occurring symptoms of attachment disorder may be identified in individuals with ASD and ID, and exploration of these symptoms in assessments of children and adolescents with ASD/ID and challenging behaviour may be beneficial.Originality/valueThe study adds to previous findings on attachment disorder in ASD, demonstrating that identification of attachment disorder is possible even in the presence of a highly complex clinical picture involving severe challenging behaviour. It may also assist other clinicians in identifying and making more accurate assessment of attachment disorder in ASD and ID.

scholarly journals An association of intrapartum synthetic oxytocin dosing and the odds of developing autism

Autism ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (6) ◽  
pp. 1400-1410 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen M Soltys ◽  
Jill Rose Scherbel ◽  
Joseph R Kurian ◽  
Todd Diebold ◽  
Teresa Wilson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Mass Index ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Cesarean Section ◽  
Odds Ratio ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder Diagnosis ◽  
High Cumulative Dose ◽  
First Time ◽  
Synthetic Oxytocin

A case-control study was performed to determine whether an association exists between exposure to synthetic oxytocin and a subsequent autism spectrum disorder diagnosis; 171 children under age 18 meeting Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.) autism spectrum disorder criteria were compared to 171 children without autism spectrum disorder diagnosis matched by gender, birth year, gestational age, and maternal age at birth. A conditional logistic regression model was used to examine the association of clinical variables and autism spectrum disorder. Significantly elevated odds ratios for autism spectrum disorder were associated with first-time Cesarean section (odds ratio = 2.56), but not a repeat Cesarean section. Odds ratios were also significantly elevated for subjects whose mother’s body mass index was 35 or higher at birth (odds ratio = 2.34) and subjects in which the reason for delivery was categorized as “fetal indication” (odds ratio = 2.00). When controlling for these and other variables, the odds of developing autism spectrum disorder were significantly elevated in males with long duration of exposure (odds ratio = 3.48) and high cumulative dose of synthetic oxytocin (odds ratio = 2.79). No significant associations of synthetic oxytocin dosing and autism spectrum disorder were noted in female subjects. The association of elevated autism spectrum disorder odds found with high duration and high cumulative dose synthetic oxytocin in male subjects suggests the need for further investigation to fully elucidate any cause and effect relationship. Lay abstract Oxytocin is a hormone naturally produced in the human body that can make the womb (uterus) contract during labor. Manufactured oxytocin is frequently given to mothers in labor to strengthen the contractions or in some cases to start labor. This study compared children with a diagnosis of autism and children without autism to see whether children with autism received more oxytocin during labor. The odds of a child having an autism diagnosis were significantly higher if the delivery was a first-time Cesarean section, if the mother had a body mass index of 35 or higher, or if the reason for delivery were a range of fetal problems that made delivery necessary. It was found that boys who were exposed to oxytocin for longer periods of time during labor and received higher total doses of oxytocin had significantly higher odds of developing autism. There were no significant associations of oxytocin dosing and autism noted in female children. As this is the first study to look at any relationship between the dose of oxytocin received during labor and the odds of developing autism, further study needs to be done to determine whether there is any cause and effect relationship. Thus, at this time, there is no recommended change in clinical practice.

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