Predictors of Age of Diagnosis for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: The Role of a Consistent Source of Medical Care, Race, and Condition Severity

AbstractParents play an essential role in supporting child development by providing a safe home, proper nutrition, and rich educational opportunities. In this article we focus on the role of caregiver speech in supporting development of young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We review studies from typically developing children and children with autism showing that rich and responsive caregiver speech supports language development. Autism intervention studies that target caregiver speech are reviewed as are recent scientific advances from studies of typical development. The strengths and weakness of different techniques for collecting language data from caregivers and children are reviewed, and natural language samples are recommended as best practice for language research in autism. We conclude that caregivers play a powerful role in shaping their children's development and encourage researchers to adapt parent-mediated intervention studies to acknowledge individual differences in parents by using a personalized medicine approach.

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Role of Mindful Parenting, Affiliate Stigma, and Parents’ Well-being in the Behavioral Adjustment of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Testing Parenting Stress as a Mediator

Mindfulness ◽

10.1007/s12671-019-01208-5 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (11) ◽

pp. 2352-2362 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Rebecca Y. M. Cheung ◽

Sandy S. W. Leung ◽

Winnie W. S. Mak

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽

Parenting Stress ◽

Children With Autism ◽

Well Being ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Behavioral Adjustment ◽

Mindful Parenting ◽

Spectrum Disorder ◽

Affiliate Stigma

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Autism Spectrum Disorder Identification, Diagnosis, and Navigation of Services: Learning From the Voices of Caregivers

Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities ◽

10.1177/1088357620922165 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 35 (4) ◽

pp. 246-256

Author(s):

Elizabeth Crais ◽

Cara S. McComish ◽

Emily F. Kertcher ◽

Steve Hooper ◽

Rebecca Pretzel ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽

Children With Autism ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Spectrum Disorder ◽

Hispanic Children ◽

White Children ◽

Barriers To Screening ◽

Age Of Diagnosis ◽

Disorder Identification ◽

Facilitators And Barriers

This study explored caregivers’ perspectives on facilitators and barriers to screening, diagnosis, and identifying and accessing other services for young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD); and caregivers’ suggestions for improving the process. Eight focus groups with 55 caregivers were conducted. Four groups had a mix of White, African American, and Asian caregivers, and to gain broader populations, we recruited two groups of Spanish-speaking and two groups of American Indian caregivers. Some caregivers reported that their child and they received excellent services; however, the majority reported concerns about the services they and their child received. The findings also indicated a lower age of diagnosis and a smaller gap between concerns and diagnosis for White non-Hispanic children compared with Hispanic non-White children. Caregivers had many suggestions for ways to improve the process.

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