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.

scholarly journals Prevalence of Anxiety and Stress in Mothers of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): A Review of Literature

2020 ◽  
pp. 121-127
Author(s):  
Katelynn Jolly ◽  
Professor Tonya Huber
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Maternal Mental Health ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Health State ◽  
Raising Children ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Information Research

Objective: Mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are likely to develop and experience stress and anxiety due to the overwhelming amount of new information, research on their child’s needs, and coping with everyday hardships. Method: This systematic review analyzed seven recent research articles related to the anxiety and stress in mothers raising children with ASD. Studies were limited to a focus on maternal mental health experiences raising a child with ASD. Findings: All studies examined show a sample of mothers that have anxiety while raising children with ASD. Researchers employed different methodologies in measuring these mothers’ anxiety at either one or two points in time. The strengths and weaknesses of each study were reviewed. Some studies even reported a direct effect concerning the way mothers interact with others and their children as a result of their mental health state. Limitations in most of the studies reviewed showed a smaller sample size than originally intended. Conclusion: While there are many studies that focus on children with ASD, there is a lack of research on the mental health state of their parents, specifically mothers. These parents take on the role of being a provider, advocate, and channel between their children and a world that is rarely accessible to them. Research in this area can greatly benefit new mothers experiencing this, and all parents that may have an unhealthy mental state when dealing with the responsibility and work it takes raising a child with a disability.

Pilot Study of a Parent Guided Website Access Package for Early Intervention Decision-Making for Autism Spectrum Disorder

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Carlon ◽  
Mark Carter ◽  
Jennifer Stephenson
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research Support ◽  
Raising Children ◽  
Children With Asd

A pilot study of the effectiveness of guided access to websites that provide information on intervention options for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) was conducted with 12 parents of preschool-aged children with ASD. Guided access to reliable websites that included information about the efficacy of interventions for ASD (Raising Children Network, 2006–2014; Research Autism, 2006–2014) was provided in the format of a DVD presentation. The guidelines for choosing interventions provided on the Raising Children Network (2009) website were reiterated and assistance was provided with navigation and interpretation of the sites. Participants reported the guided access to reliable websites as useful and also reported an increased level of confidence in making intervention decisions after using the package. However, the guided access did not appear to influence the factors that parents considered important in decision-making, their understanding of the level of research support for interventions, nor their desire to use different interventions. Implications for future research and attempts to disseminate information to parents are discussed.

scholarly journals COVID-19 Related Challenges and Advice from Parents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 73-82
Author(s):  
China I. Parenteau ◽  
Stephen Bent ◽  
Bushra Hossain ◽  
Yingtong Chen ◽  
Felicia Widjaja ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Positive Coping ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Families With Children ◽  
And Behavior

With the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic and shelter-in-place, families with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) face a unique set of challenges related to a diverse set of issues. A qualitative study was conducted in the form of semi-structured interviews from fifteen parents of children and adolescents from a non-public school for children with ASD. Questions covered the following topic areas: general COVID-19 experiences and concerns, changes in the child’s mood and behavior, changes in parent mood and behavior, and coping/advice. Quotes and descriptions from the participants were reviewed and grouped into thematic areas. Findings showed that parents of children with ASD are facing a wide range of challenges, including explaining COVID-19 and safety precautions to their child in a comprehensible way, assisting with e-learning, and guiding their child back into social situations and the community. As children with ASD have difficulties with transitions, parents stated the importance of creating structure in the home by creating schedules and boundaries, while allowing for flexibility as to not over enforce the rigidity children with autism often face. Advice on coping with the additional stressors were also shared. Parents recommended finding time for themselves to reset, utilizing support systems, and reflecting on daily pleasures as positive coping mechanisms. This study aimed to both develop an initial guide for families, teachers and clinicians caring for children with ASD and to create awareness in the community about the challenges presented by COVID-19 and shelter-in-place.

scholarly journals Parents’ Perceptions of Early Interventions and Related Services for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Saudi Arabia

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Faihan Alotaibi ◽  
Nabil Almalki
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Early Intervention ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Early Interventions ◽  
Related Services ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
The Government

<p class="apa">The present study sought to examine parents’ perceptions of early interventions and related services for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in Saudi Arabia. In this study a survey was distributed to a sample of 80 parents with children who have ASD. Parents also were asked open-ended questions to enable them to provide suggestions. The findings indicate that parents have varying perceptions of early interventions and related services. However, they seem to agree that these services are important in assisting their children. Accordingly, parents have suggested that the government needs to increase these services by providing more centers for children with ASD in Saudi Arabia, providing more specialists to deal with children with ASD, promoting inclusion in regular schools and providing more information on early intervention.</p>

scholarly journals Implication of the Sensory Environment in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Perspectives from School

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (14) ◽  
pp. 7670
Author(s):  
Ana Gentil-Gutiérrez ◽  
José Luis Cuesta-Gómez ◽  
Paula Rodríguez-Fernández ◽  
Jerónimo Javier González-Bernal
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Sensory Processing ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Sensory Profile ◽  
School Factors ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Sensory Stimuli ◽  
Children With Asd

(1) Background: Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) frequently have difficulties in processing sensory information, which is a limitation when participating in different contexts, such as school. The objective of the present study was to compare the sensory processing characteristics of children with ASD in the natural context of school through the perception of professionals in the field of education, in comparison with neurodevelopmental children (2) Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study as conducted with study population consisting of children between three and ten years old, 36 of whom were diagnosed with ASD and attended the Autismo Burgos association; the remaining 24 had neurotypical development. The degree of response of the children to sensory stimuli at school was evaluated using the Sensory Profile-2 (SP-2) questionnaire in its school version, answered by the teachers. (3) Results: Statistically significant differences were found in sensory processing patterns (p = 0.001), in sensory systems (p = 0.001) and in school factors (p = 0.001). Children with ASD who obtained worse results. (4) Conclusions: Children with ASD are prone to present sensory alterations in different contexts, giving nonadapted behavioral and learning responses.

Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fifth Edition Profiles of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder Using a Classification and Regression Trees Analysis

2021 ◽  
pp. 073428292110259
Author(s):  
Brittany A. Dale ◽  
W. Holmes Finch ◽  
Kassie A. R. Shellabarger ◽  
Andrew Davis
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Language Impairment ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Intelligence Scale ◽  
Cart Analysis ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Classification And Regression ◽  
Pattern Of Performance

The Wechsler Intelligence Scales for Children (WISC) are the most widely used instrument in assessing cognitive ability, especially with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Previous literature on the WISC has demonstrated a divergent pattern of performance on the WISC for children ASD compared to their typically developing peers; however, there is a lack of research concerning the most recent iteration, the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fifth Edition (WISC-V). Due to the distinctive changes made to the WISC-V, we sought to identify the pattern of performance of children with ASD on the WISC-V using a classification and regression (CART) analysis. The current study used the standardization sample data of the WISC-V obtained from NCS Pearson, Inc. Sixty-two children diagnosed with ASD, along with their demographically matched controls, comprised the sample. Results revealed the Comprehension and Letter-Number Sequencing subtests were the most important factors in predicting group membership for children with ASD with an accompanying language impairment. Children with ASD without an accompanying language impairment, however, were difficult to distinguish from matched controls through the CART analysis. Results suggest school psychologists and other clinicians should administer all primary and supplemental subtests of the WISC-V as part of a comprehensive assessment of ASD.

scholarly journals Perceptions of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Etiology among Parents of Children with ASD

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (13) ◽  
pp. 6774
Author(s):  
Wei-Ju Chen ◽  
Zihan Zhang ◽  
Haocen Wang ◽  
Tung-Sung Tseng ◽  
Ping Ma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Neurodevelopmental Disorder ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Parental Perceptions ◽  
Repetitive Behaviors ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Religious Factors

Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social communication deficits and restricted or repetitive behaviors. Parental perceptions of the etiology of their child’s ASD can affect provider–client relationships, bonding between parents and their children, and the prognosis, treatment, and management of children with ASD. Thus, this study sought to examine the perceptions of ASD etiology of parents of children with ASD. Methods: Forty-two parents of children diagnosed with ASD were recruited across Texas. Semi-structured interviews were conducted individually. All interviews were recorded and later transcribed verbatim for content analysis utilizing NVivo 12.0 (QSR International, Doncaster, Australia). Results: The content analysis identified the following themes regarding parental perceptions of ASD etiology: Genetic factors (40.5%), environmental factors (31.0%), problems that occurred during pregnancy or delivery (23.8%), vaccinations (16.7%), other health problems (7.1%), parental age at the time of pregnancy (4.8%), and spiritual or religious factors (2.4%). Conclusions: The parental perceptions of ASD etiology were diverse, but several views, such as vaccinations and spiritual or religious factors, were not based on scientific evidence. Health professionals and researchers can use these findings to develop and provide targeted education to parents who have children with ASD. Our findings also support policymakers in developing campaigns designed to increase parental ASD awareness and knowledge.

Comparative Effects of Picture Symbol With Paired Text and Text-Only Augmentative and Alternative Communication Representations on Communication From Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder

2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 584-597
Author(s):  
Christine Holyfield
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Augmentative And Alternative Communication ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
School Age Children ◽  
Book Reading ◽  
Single Subject ◽  
Alternative Communication ◽  
Children With Asd

Purpose Technology features that maximize communicative benefit while minimizing learning demands must be identified and prioritized to amplify the efficiency and effectiveness of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) intervention. Picture symbols with paired text are a common representation feature in AAC systems for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who are preliterate, yet little research about their comparative benefit exists. Method Four school-age children with ASD and limited speech who were preliterate participated in two single-subject studies. In one study, communication of high imageability words (e.g., nouns) on an AAC app during a book-reading activity was compared across two representation conditions: picture symbols with paired text and text only. In the second study, communication of low imageability words (e.g., verbs) was compared. Both studies had baseline, intervention, generalization, and maintenance phases. Results Prior to intervention, participants communicated across both representation conditions at low rates except two participants who were relatively successful using picture symbol with paired text representations of high imageability words. In response to intervention, all participants demonstrated increases in communication across representation conditions and maintained the increases. Participants demonstrated generalization in the text-only representation condition. Conclusions Children with ASD who were preliterate acquired communication at comparable rates regardless of whether an AAC app utilized picture symbol with paired text or text-only representation. Therefore, while larger scale research is needed, clinicians and technology developers could consider increasing the use of text in AAC representation given the inherent value associated with learning to recognize written words. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.13661357

scholarly journals The Role of Occupational Therapy in Managing Food Selectivity of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Scoping Review

Children ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (11) ◽  
pp. 1024
Author(s):  
Laura Reche-Olmedo ◽  
Laura Torres-Collado ◽  
Laura María Compañ-Gabucio ◽  
Manuela Garcia-de-la-Hera
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Occupational Therapists ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Food Selectivity ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Journal Citation Reports ◽  
Children With Asd

Food selectivity is common in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). It can be defined as the unwillingness to eat common or new foods, resulting in a lack of variety in the diet or limited food consumption for multiple reasons, such as inflexibility or sensory alterations. We conducted a peer scoping review to describe the interventions that are carried out from occupational therapy (OT) in children with ASD with food selectivity. Two authors independently searched the databases PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and EMBASE, as well as the OT journals indexed in Journal Citation Reports. Articles exploring OT interventions in children (≤12 years) with ASD and food selectivity, published in Spanish or English, with experimental design, and with full text available were included. Of the 1445 articles identified, 8 articles met the inclusion criteria. Three main intervention categories were identified: sensory–behavioral, family focused, and other interventions. Most of the interventions from OT were aimed at treating sensory–behavioral aspects. Only three articles described interventions led exclusively by occupational therapists, and the rest were led by a multidisciplinary team. Finally, although these interventions are not exclusive to OT, occupational therapists can participate together with other professionals as an essential component in the treatment of food selectivity in children with ASD.

scholarly journals When Will He Talk? An Evidence-Based Tutorial for Measuring Progress Toward Use of Spoken Words in Preverbal Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder

2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Jena McDaniel ◽  
C. Melanie Schuele
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Progress Monitoring ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Therapeutic Setting ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Spoken Words ◽  
Sampling Procedures

Purpose Professionals face substantial challenges determining whether and when children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who are not yet using spoken words will use spoken language as their primary means of communication. This tutorial provides speech-language pathologists with practical guidance on how to measure expressive language predictors for progress monitoring and making intervention decisions for children with ASD who are preverbal. Method This tutorial is a repackaging effort that seeks to make the research accessible to clinicians wishing to implement evidence-based practice. Results We describe intentional communication, consonant inventory in communication acts, and responding to joint attention as particularly valuable prelinguistic skills to measure. We explain how and when to efficiently assess progress using published assessments periodically and using brief (5-min) communication samples for more frequent progress monitoring. Conclusions Communication samples can be used to show how a child performs within a therapeutic setting during teaching (treatment data) and outside of the therapeutic setting (generalization probe data). Both types of data are critical for determining whether the child is exhibiting progress and which aspects of intervention are facilitating progress toward use of spoken words. These recommendations also balance the evidence for best practices for progress monitoring and the demands on clinicians' time and effort. To encourage the measurement of prelinguistic skills of children with ASD who are preverbal in clinical practice, we include (a) example data collection documents, (b) examples with hypothetical data and interpretation, and (c) guidance on communication sampling procedures. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.13557836

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