scholarly journals Assessing language skills in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 101-113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diane King ◽  
Olympia Palikara
Keyword(s):  
Narrative Analysis ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
Receptive Language ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Pragmatic Language ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Adolescents With Autism ◽  
Evaluative Language ◽  
Teachers And Parents ◽  
Adolescents With Asd

Language abilities in adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are variable and can be challenging to ascertain with confidence. This study aimed to compare and evaluate different forms of language assessment: standardized language testing, narrative analysis and parent/teacher reports. 14 adolescents with ASD and 14 typically developing adolescents matched on age, gender and nonverbal ability were assessed using a number of standardized assessments for receptive and expressive language skills, a standardized narrative test, two experimental narrative assessments and a parent/teacher report measure of pragmatics. The findings were that, although adolescents with ASD scored within the normal range on expressive and receptive language, their performance on narrative tasks revealed difficulties with both structural and evaluative language. It should be noted that both teachers and parents rated the pragmatic language skills of the young people with ASD as significantly lower than those of the typically developing group but parents were more likely than teachers to additionally identify difficulties in speech and syntax. The implications of these results for professionals in terms of assessing the language skills of adolescents with ASD and for the planning of appropriate intervention are discussed.

scholarly journals Enjoyment, Barriers, and Beliefs About Physical Activity in Adolescents With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 302-317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heidi Stanish ◽  
Carol Curtin ◽  
Aviva Must ◽  
Sarah Phillips ◽  
Melissa Maslin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Team Sports ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Perceived Barriers ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Adolescents With Autism ◽  
Activity Enjoyment ◽  
Adolescents With Asd

The authors compared physical activity enjoyment, perceived barriers, beliefs, and self-efficacy between adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and typically developing (TD) adolescents. A questionnaire was verbally administered to 35 adolescents with ASD and 60 TD adolescents. Compared with TD adolescents, fewer adolescents with ASD enjoyed team sports (65% vs. 95%, p < .001) and physical education (84% vs. 98%, p = .02). A greater proportion of adolescents with ASD perceived that physical activities were too hard to learn (16% vs. 0%, p < .01), and fewer believed that physical activity was a way to make friends (68% vs. 97%, p < .001). Fewer adolescents with ASD preferred to do physical activity in their free time (25% vs. 58%, p < .01). Most adolescents with ASD felt that physical activity is fun (84%), but the proportion was lower than in TD adolescents (98%, p = .03). Some perceptions about physical activity were similar between the 2 groups, but differences identified may inform program development.

scholarly journals The art of common ground: emergence of a complex pragmatic language skill in adolescents with autism spectrum disorders

2015 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
ASHLEY DE MARCHENA ◽  
INGE-MARIE EIGSTI
Keyword(s):  
Common Ground ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Receptive Vocabulary ◽  
Language Skill ◽  
Pragmatic Language ◽  
Narrative Paradigm ◽  
Quality Ratings ◽  
Adolescents With Autism ◽  
General Skills ◽  
Adolescents With Asd

ABSTRACTDeficits in pragmatic language are central to autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Here we investigatecommon ground, a pragmatic language skill in which speakers adjust the contents of their speech based on their interlocutor's perceived knowledge, in adolescents with ASD and typical development (TD), using an experimental narrative paradigm. Consistent with prior research, TD participants produced shorter narrations when they shared knowledge with an interlocutor, an effect not observed at the group level in ASD. This effect was unrelated to general skills such as IQ or receptive vocabulary. In ASD, the effect was correlated with age and symptom severity: older and less severely affected participantsdidshorten their narratives. Several metrics (including explicit references to common ground, speech disfluencies, and communicative quality ratings) suggested that, although adolescents with ASD did not show implicit reductions in their narrative length, they were aware of common ground, and communicated differently in its presence.

Contingencies of self-worth in adolescents with ASD and their correlation with subjective adjustment to school

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-71
Author(s):  
Shuhei Ogawa ◽  
Michio Kojima
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Original Research ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Validity And Reliability ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Adolescents With Autism ◽  
Self Worth ◽  
Adolescents With Asd

Purpose The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to validate the Contingencies of Self-Worth Scale (CSWS) for adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and typically developing individuals and, second, examine the association between contingencies of self-worth and subjective adjustment to school. Design/methodology/approach A self-report was used to examine both contingencies of self-worth and subjective adjustment to school in adolescents with ASD and typically developing individuals. Findings First, the validity and reliability of the CSWS was verified. Second, the scale was not significant correlation with subjective adjustment to school and contingencies of self-worth in adolescents with ASD. As the reason for this, it has been suggested that there are adaptive aspects and maladaptive aspects in contingencies of self-worth. Originality/value This is an original research designed to examine contingencies of self-worth in adolescents with ASD.

scholarly journals The use of prosody during syntactic processing in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 867-884 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua John Diehl ◽  
Carlyn Friedberg ◽  
Rhea Paul ◽  
Jesse Snedeker
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorders ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Eye Gaze ◽  
Receptive Language ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Language Abilities ◽  
Prosodic Cues ◽  
Adolescents With Autism ◽  
Spectrum Disorders

AbstractIn this study, we employed an eye-gaze paradigm to explore whether children (ages 8–12) and adolescents (ages 12–18) with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are able to use prosodic cues to determine the syntactic structure of an utterance. Persons with ASD were compared to typically developing (TD) peers matched on age, IQ, gender, and receptive language abilities. The stimuli were syntactically ambiguous but had a prosodic break that indicated the appropriate interpretation (feel the frog … with the feathervs.feel … the frog with the feather). We found that all groups were equally sensitive to the initial prosodic cues that were presented. Children and teens with ASD used prosody to interpret the ambiguous phrase as rapidly and efficiently as their TD peers. However, when a different cue was presented in subsequent trials, the younger ASD group was more likely to respond in a manner consistent with the initial prosodic cue rather than the new one. Eye-tracking data indicated that both younger groups (ASD and TD) had trouble shifting their interpretation as the prosodic cue changed, but the younger TD group was able to overcome this interference and produce an action consistent with the prosodic cue.

Let's Talk: Review of Conversation Intervention Approaches for School-Aged Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (02) ◽  
pp. 158-165
Author(s):  
Geralyn Timler
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Children And Adolescents ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Pragmatic Language ◽  
Conversation Skills ◽  
School Aged Children ◽  
Adolescents With Autism ◽  
Social Tasks ◽  
Nonverbal Skills

AbstractConversation skills are an important intervention focus for verbally fluent school-aged children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Three sets of approaches for supporting conversation skills are reviewed. Pragmatic language approaches focus on teaching the verbal and nonverbal skills needed to initiate and maintain conversations including strategies for recognizing and repairing communication breakdowns. Social skill approaches focus on similar conversation behaviors, but these behaviors are usually taught for use within specific social tasks such as entering peer groups, maintaining interactions, and resolving conflicts. Peer-focused approaches enlist the support of peers through direct teaching of strategies to engage and maintain conversations with students with ASD (i.e., peer-mediated interventions) or through environmental arrangement strategies to promote interactions between students with and without ASD (i.e., peer networks). Conversation interventions that incorporate strategies from all three sets of approaches are most likely to promote optimal outcomes. These outcomes include opportunities for students with ASD to develop and refine conversation skills with classmates who are more open to interactions with peers of differing abilities.

The Processes Underlying Positive Illusory Bias in ADHD: The Role of Executive Functions and Pragmatic Language Skills

2021 ◽  
pp. 108705472110636
Author(s):  
Giulia Crisci ◽  
Ramona Cardillo ◽  
Irene C. Mammarella
Keyword(s):  
Social Competence ◽  
Executive Functions ◽  
Receptive Language ◽  
Pragmatic Language ◽  
Positive Illusory Bias ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Children With Adhd ◽  
Pragmatic Language Skills ◽  
Social Difficulties

Objective: Children with ADHD often show a positive illusory bias (PIB), reporting an extremely positive idea of their own competence, despite their difficulties. The mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are still poorly understood. In the present study, we examined social PIB and investigated the role of executive functions (EFs) and pragmatic language (PL). Method: Forty-one children with ADHD and 42 typically-developing children matched on age, IQ, and receptive language were administered measures of social competence, EFs and PL. The parents were also asked to estimate their child’s social competence. Results: There was evidence of social difficulties and PIB in children with ADHD. Only PL, not EFs, seemed to mediate the association between ADHD and PIB. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that PL abilities should be considered in efforts to improve self-perception in children with ADHD.

Obesity, physical activity, and sedentary behaviors in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder compared with typically developing peers

Autism ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 387-399 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie M McCoy ◽  
Kristen Morgan
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Sedentary Behavior ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Health Concern ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Adolescents With Autism ◽  
Unhealthy Weight

Decreased engagement in beneficial physical activity and increased levels of sedentary behavior and unhealthy weight are a continued public health concern in adolescents. Adolescents with autism spectrum disorder may be at an increased risk compared with their typically developing peers. Weekly physical activity, sedentary behavior, and body mass index classification were compared among adolescents with and without autism spectrum disorder. Analyses included 33,865 adolescents (autism spectrum disorder, n = 1036) from the 2016–2017 National Survey of Children’s Health (United States). After adjustment for covariates, adolescents with autism spectrum disorder were found to engage in less physical activity and were more likely to be overweight and obese compared with their typically developing peers ( p’s < 0.05). As parent-reported autism spectrum disorder severity increased, the adjusted odds of being overweight and obese significantly increased and physical activity participation decreased ( p-for-trends < 0.001). The findings suggest there is a need for targeted programs to decrease unhealthy weight status and support physical activity opportunities for adolescents with autism spectrum disorder across the severity spectrum.

Poor Sleep Quality Among Adolescents With ASD Is Associated With Depressive Symptoms, Problem Behaviors, and Conflicted Family Relationships

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 173-182 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janice N. Phung ◽  
Maryam M. Abdullah ◽  
Wendy A. Goldberg
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Sleep Quality ◽  
Problem Behaviors ◽  
Family Relationships ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Poor Sleep ◽  
Adolescent Relationships ◽  
Adolescents With Autism ◽  
Adolescents With Asd

To better understand correlates of sleep issues for adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), we conducted two related studies of sleep quality in association with adolescent well-being and family relationships. In Study 1, 28 adolescents with ASD, 27 typically developing (TD) adolescents, and their mothers, participated. Mothers and adolescents independently completed questionnaires about sleep and adolescent functioning. In Study 2, 20 adolescents with ASD and their mothers participated, and actigraphy was used to measure sleep quality. Regression results from Study 1 indicated more daytime sleepiness was associated with more depressive symptoms and more discordant mother–adolescent relationships in the ASD sample. More sleep–wake problems were associated with more depressive symptoms in TD adolescents. In Study 2, more time asleep and poorer sleep efficiency were associated with more depressive symptoms and discordant sibling relationships. These findings suggest that helping adolescents with ASD with their sleep issues may confer benefits in other parts of their lives.

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