scholarly journals Autistic children’s language imitation shows reduced sensitivity to ostracism

Author(s):  
Zoë L. Hopkins ◽  
Nicola Yuill ◽  
Holly P. Branigan

AbstractIn dialogue, speakers tend to imitate, or align with, a partner’s language choices. Higher levels of alignment facilitate communication and can be elicited by affiliation goals. Since autistic children have interaction and communication impairments, we investigated whether a failure to display affiliative language imitation contributes to their conversational difficulties. We measured autistic children’s lexical alignment with a partner, following an ostracism manipulation which induces affiliative motivation in typical adults and children. While autistic children demonstrated lexical alignment, we observed no affiliative influence on ostracised children’s tendency to align, relative to controls. Our results suggest that increased language imitation—a potentially valuable form of social adaptation—is unavailable to autistic children, which may reflect their impaired affective understanding.

Autism ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 136236132098795
Author(s):  
Eleanor R Palser ◽  
Alejandro Galvez-Pol ◽  
Clare E Palmer ◽  
Ricci Hannah ◽  
Aikaterini Fotopoulou ◽  
...  

Differences in understanding emotion in autism are well-documented, although far more research has considered how being autistic impacts an understanding of other people’s emotions, compared to their own. In neurotypical adults and children, many emotions are associated with distinct bodily maps of experienced sensation, and the ability to report these maps is significantly related to the awareness of interoceptive signals. Here, in 100 children who either carry a clinical diagnosis of autism ( n = 45) or who have no history of autism ( n = 55), we investigated potential differences in differentiation across autistic children’s bodily maps of emotion, as well as how such differentiation relates to the processing of interoceptive signals. As such, we measured objective interoceptive performance using the heartbeat-counting task, and participants’ subjective experience of interoceptive signals using the child version of the Body Perception Questionnaire. We found less differentiation in the bodily maps of emotion in autistic children, but no association with either objective or subjective interoceptive processing. These findings suggest that, in addition to previously reported differences in detecting others’ emotional states, autistic children have a less differentiated bodily experience of emotion. This does not, however, relate to differences in interoceptive perception as measured here. Lay abstract More research has been conducted on how autistic people understand and interpret other people’s emotions, than on how autistic people experience their own emotions. The experience of emotion is important however, because it can relate to difficulties like anxiety and depression, which are common in autism. In neurotypical adults and children, different emotions have been associated with unique maps of activity patterns in the body. Whether these maps of emotion are comparable in autism is currently unknown. Here, we asked 100 children and adolescents, 45 of whom were autistic, to color in outlines of the body to indicate how they experienced seven emotions. Autistic adults and children sometimes report differences in how they experience their internal bodily states, termed interoception, and so we also investigated how this related to the bodily maps of emotion. In this study, the autistic children and adolescents had comparable interoception to the non-autistic children and adolescents, but there was less variability in their maps of emotion. In other words, they showed more similar patterns of activity across the different emotions. This was not related to interoception, however. This work suggests that there are differences in how autistic people experience emotion that are not explained by differences in interoception. In neurotypical people, less variability in emotional experiences is linked to anxiety and depression, and future work should seek to understand if this is a contributing factor to the increased prevalence of these difficulties in autism.


Author(s):  
Osama Halabi ◽  
Samir Abou El-Seoud ◽  
Jihad Alja'am ◽  
Hena Alpona ◽  
Moza Al-Hemadi ◽  
...  

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) regularly experience situations in which they need to give answers but do not know how to respond; for example, questions related to everyday life activities that are asked by strangers. Research geared at utilizing technology to mend social and communication impairments in children with autism is actively underway. Immersive virtual reality (VR) is a relatively recent technology that has the potential of being an effective therapeutic tool for developing various skills in autistic children. This paper presents an interactive scenario-based VR system developed to improve the communications skills of autistic children. The system utilizes speech recognition to provide natural interaction and role-play and turn-taking to evaluate and verify the effectiveness of the immersive environment on the social performance of autistic children. In experiments conducted, participants showed more improved performance with a computer augmented virtual environment (CAVE) than with a head mounted display (HMD) or a normal desktop. The results indicate that immersive VR could be more satisfactory and motivational than desktop for children with ASD.


Author(s):  
Л.Р. Тухватуллина

Актуальность исследования данной проблемы обусловлена быстрым вхождением цифровизации во все сферы человеческой жизни, что многие процессы социальной адаптации подрастающего поколения не успевают принимать ту форму, при которой молодые люди могли гармонично развиваться как в умственном, так и в физическом, духовном и психологическом аспекте. В связи с этим, данная статья направлена на ознакомление с историей Скаутского движения в России и мира, а также возможности реализации идей Скаутинга в воспитании подрастающего поколения и развития их физических и интеллектуальных способностей, а также активного участия в жизни общества, социального взаимодействия не только в масштабах одной семьи, класса, но и всей страны, мира. В статье рассмотрены истоки зарождения Скаутинга, выделены особенности его развития за рубежом, характеризующиеся формированием экологической этики, равенства между взрослыми и детьми и подготовкой молодежи к взаимодействию с социумом. Автором предложена периодизация, и выявлены отличительные особенности в развитии Скаутского движения в отечественной практике, характеризующиеся выделением пяти этапов в развитии Скаутинга, для каждого из которых характерны свои особенности (1 этап – зарождение и развитие Скаутинга в России, 2 этап – запрет Скаутинга в России, 3 этап – зарубежный этап Российского Скаутинга, 4 этап – возрождение Скаутинга в России, 5 этап – Скаутинг в России в наши дни). В исследовании выявлена взаимосвязь временных отрезков истории Скаутинга через сохранение Обещания, Законов, девиза, лозунга, принципов, традиций и атрибутики Скаутского движения, которые тесно связаны с идей организации всестороннего развития подрастающего поколения, способного быть полезным себе и обществу. The relevance of the study of this problem is due to the rapid entry of digitalization into all spheres of human life, while many processes of social adaptation of the younger generation do not have time to take the form in which young people could develop harmoniously both in the mental and physical, spiritual and psychological aspects. In this regard, this article is aimed at acquainting with the history of the Scout movement in Russia and abroad, as well as the possibility of implementing the ideas of Scouting in the upbringing of the younger generation and the development of their physical and intellectual abilities, as well as active participation in the life of society, social interaction not only in the scale of one family, class, but the whole country, the world. The article examines the origins of Scouting, highlights the features of its development abroad, characterized by the formation of environmental ethics, equality between adults and children and the preparation of young people for interaction with society. The author proposes a periodization and reveals distinctive features in the development of the Scout movement in Russian practice, characterized by the allocation of five stages in the development of Scouting, each of which has its own characteristics (stage 1 – the emergence and development of Scouting in Russia, stage 2 – the prohibition of Scouting in Russia, stage 3 – the foreign stage of Russian Scouting, stage 4 – the revival of Scouting in Russia, stage 5 - Scouting in Russia today). The study revealed the relationship of time periods in the history of Scouting via means of preservation of the Promises, Laws, motto, slogan, principles, traditions and attributes of the Scout Movement, which are closely related to the ideas of organization in the all-round development of the younger generation capable of being useful to themselves and to society.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 283-287
Author(s):  
Marina Sadovski

The article discusses the idea that children with movement disorders have great potential for motor and mental development. The experiment consists of two stages. In the first stage of the experiment, the characteristics of disability in children and adolescents (between age 12 and 16) with Infantile Cerebral Palsy are determined. During this stage, two diagnostic methods, bodily “Me” and “The Color-A-Person Body Dissatisfaction Test,” are used.In the second phase of the research program, social pedagogical aids for people with disabilities have been developed. On the basis of the experimental work, the obtained social pedagogical insights have been successfully implemented in the social adaption of disabled children.It is determined that this method is promising to help adults and children with mobility impairment to enhance their mental well-being, attain a positive body image, express their feelings freely, interact socially using a motor component, and above all—enjoy the movements. This method can ensure the effectiveness of social adaptation of persons with disabilities.


2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henny Kupferstein

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) in adults and children who were exposed to applied behavior analysis (ABA) autism early childhood intervention. Using an online questionnaire to survey autistic adults and caregivers of autistic children, the author collected data from 460 respondents on demographics, intervention types, and current pathological behaviors with symptom severity scales. This study noted PTSS in nearly half of ABA-exposed participants, while non-exposed controls had a 72 percent chance of being asymptomatic. ABA satisfaction ratings for caregivers averaged neutral or mild satisfaction. In contrast, adult satisfaction with ABA was lower on average and also tended to take on either extremely low or extremely high ratings. Exposure to ABA predicted a higher rate and more severe PTSS in participants, but the duration of exposure did not affect satisfaction with the intervention in caregivers. Design/methodology/approach Participants were recruited for an online survey through social media networks, adult gatherings, social skills groups, and autism support groups nationwide. Adult inclusion criteria consisted of autism – diagnosed or self-diagnosed – and an age of 18 or older. A total of 460 respondents, consisting of autistic adults and caregivers of autistic children, completed an online survey. The caregiver entries (n=217) concerned 79 percent male children, 21 percent female children (male to female 3.80:1), and one MtF transgender child, ages 1-38, with an average age at diagnosis of 4.69 years. The adult entries (n=243) concerned 30 percent males, 55 percent females (male to female 0.55:1), and 14 percent other gender, ages 18-73, with an average age at diagnosis of 25.38 years. Findings Nearly half (46 percent) of the ABA-exposed respondents met the diagnostic threshold for PTSD, and extreme levels of severity were recorded in 47 percent of the affected subgroup. Respondents of all ages who were exposed to ABA were 86 percent more likely to meet the PTSD criteria than respondents who were not exposed to ABA. Adults and children both had increased chances (41 and 130 percent, respectively) of meeting the PTSD criteria if they were exposed to ABA. Both adults and children without ABA exposure had a 72 percent chance of reporting no PTSS (see Figure 1). At the time of the study, 41 percent of the caregivers reported using ABA-based interventions. Originality/value The majority of adult respondents were female, raising questions about the population of online autistic survey respondents. Further, the high numbers of reported gender other than male or female in the adult respondents, as well as at least on MtF child from the caregiver respondents indicates that future studies should consider these intersections. These accompanied significant discrepancies in reporting bias between caregivers and ABA-exposed individuals, which highlight the need for the inclusion of the adult autistic voice in future intervention design. Based on the findings, the author predicts that nearly half of ABA-exposed autistic children will be expected to meet the PTSD criteria four weeks after commencing the intervention; if ABA intervention persists, there will tend to be an increase in parent satisfaction despite no decrease in PTSS severity.


1972 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leo Kanner ◽  
Alejandro Rodriguez ◽  
Barbara Ashenden

2020 ◽  
pp. 187-234
Author(s):  
John D. Bonvillian ◽  
Nicole Kissane Lee ◽  
Tracy T. Dooley ◽  
Filip T. Loncke

Chapter 6 focuses on the language and communication impairments of adults and children that may be acquired after suffering a head injury, stroke, brain infection, tumor, or other similar trauma. Such persons may have had intact language abilities before the trauma, but often present with varying degrees of severity of aphasia that may temporarily or permanently affect their receptive understanding of language and/or their production of language. Although most of the literature examines such deficits in hearing persons and the resulting impact on spoken language, deaf persons may also experience aphasic impairments to their production and understanding of sign language. An examination of apraxia, which often co-occurs with aphasia, provides another dimension that needs to be analyzed when addressing strategies for language rehabilitation. The outcomes of sign-communication interventions in persons with aphasia are presented, along with a focus on Amer-Ind, pantomime skills, and the use of signing to facilitate speech. Finally, the authors address speech and language disorders such as acquired childhood aphasia (Landau-Kleffner syndrome), developmental language disorder (formerly known as specific language impairment) in both hearing and deaf children, and childhood apraxia of speech.


2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 1783-1797
Author(s):  
Kelly L. Coburn ◽  
Diane L. Williams

Purpose Neurodevelopmental processes that begin during gestation and continue throughout childhood typically support language development. Understanding these processes can help us to understand the disruptions to language that occur in neurodevelopmental conditions, such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Method For this tutorial, we conducted a focused literature review on typical postnatal brain development and structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging, diffusion tensor imaging, magnetoencephalography, and electroencephalography studies of the neurodevelopmental differences that occur in ASD. We then integrated this knowledge with the literature on evidence-based speech-language intervention practices for autistic children. Results In ASD, structural differences include altered patterns of cortical growth and myelination. Functional differences occur at all brain levels, from lateralization of cortical functions to the rhythmic activations of single neurons. Neuronal oscillations, in particular, could help explain disrupted language development by elucidating the timing differences that contribute to altered functional connectivity, complex information processing, and speech parsing. Findings related to implicit statistical learning, explicit task learning, multisensory integration, and reinforcement in ASD are also discussed. Conclusions Consideration of the neural differences in autistic children provides additional scientific support for current recommended language intervention practices. Recommendations consistent with these neurological findings include the use of short, simple utterances; repetition of syntactic structures using varied vocabulary; pause time; visual supports; and individualized sensory modifications.


1991 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 671-678 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joan E. Sussman

This investigation examined the response strategies and discrimination accuracy of adults and children aged 5–10 as the ratio of same to different trials was varied across three conditions of a “change/no-change” discrimination task. The conditions varied as follows: (a) a ratio of one-third same to two-thirds different trials (33% same), (b) an equal ratio of same to different trials (50% same), and (c) a ratio of two-thirds same to one-third different trials (67% same). Stimuli were synthetic consonant-vowel syllables that changed along a place of articulation dimension by formant frequency transition. Results showed that all subjects changed their response strategies depending on the ratio of same-to-different trials. The most lax response pattern was observed for the 50% same condition, and the most conservative pattern was observed for the 67% same condition. Adult response patterns were most conservative across condition. Differences in discrimination accuracy as measured by P(C) were found, with the largest difference in the 5- to 6-year-old group and the smallest change in the adult group. These findings suggest that children’s response strategies, like those of adults, can be manipulated by changing the ratio of same-to-different trials. Furthermore, interpretation of sensitivity measures must be referenced to task variables such as the ratio of same-to-different trials.


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