Innocent Machines

2020 ◽  
pp. 83-107
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Fein
Keyword(s):  
Mental Illness ◽  
Moral Agency ◽  
Asperger's Syndrome ◽  
Asperger’S Syndrome ◽  
The United States ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Autism Spectrum Conditions ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Brain Science ◽  
Social Lives

Drawing on school-based ethnography in classrooms serving students with Asperger’s syndrome and related autism spectrum conditions in a district on the East Coast of the United States, this chapter analyzes how the meanings of these conditions are defined, negotiated, and deployed in consequential ways in contexts of everyday practice. The chapter begins by tracing schisms between “developmental disability” and “mental illness.” Through what Ian Hacking calls a “looping effect of human kinds,” students diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome and related developmental disabilities come to exemplify a form of “brainhood,” a cerebral identity associated with replicable, quantified, and high-tech brain science. This schema is contrasted with local understandings of students classified with emotional or behavioral disturbance as changeable, morally culpable, and interpersonally engaged—thus exemplifying theories of mental illness as rooted in fluid brain chemistry and family dysfunction. The association of students with Asperger’s syndrome with a brain science seen as value-producing, mechanistic, and estranged from sociality wins them both a protected space and scarce material resources; however, this vision of Asperger’s students as “innocent machines” cannot effectively conceptualize the moral agency of their robustly social lives.

Resilience and Adaptive Management in Piano Pedagogy for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Conditions

2019 ◽  
pp. 249-261
Author(s):  
Michael B. Nitzberg ◽  
Jeff Todd Titon
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Adaptive Management ◽  
Asperger's Syndrome ◽  
Asperger’S Syndrome ◽  
Piano Pedagogy ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Autism Spectrum Conditions ◽  
Item List ◽  
Spectrum Condition ◽  
Concert Pianist

The co-authors are a concert pianist with the autism spectrum condition (ASC) Asperger's syndrome (Nitzberg) and an ethnomusicologist who researches autism (Bakan). Through their collaboration, they aim to develop effective piano pedagogy methods for students with ASC–also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD)–and promote neurodiversity and improved quality of life for autistic individuals. The centerpiece of the article is an annotated, five-item list of “dos and don'ts” for teaching piano to people with Asperger's syndrome. Situating that list within Titon's concepts of adaptive management and resilience, Nitzberg and Bakan propose that beyond their direct value in music education, the interpersonal pedagogical engagements explored hold further relevance for what they might reveal generally about the role of musical cultures in sustaining communities and (eco)systems.

scholarly journals Intelligence Quotient Levels and Sub Tests Comparison in Autistic Children

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vijay Kumar Sah ◽  
Hem Sagar Rimal ◽  
Archana Rimal
Keyword(s):  
Intelligence Quotient ◽  
Asperger's Syndrome ◽  
Asperger’S Syndrome ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Repetitive Behaviors ◽  
Autistic Children ◽  
Intelligence Scale ◽  
Medical College ◽  
Social Reciprocity

Background Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are disorders of neurodevelopmental origin characterized by social reciprocity deficits, communication deficits, and unusual restricted and repetitive behaviors. In some of these people, measured IQ (Intelligence Quotient) can be normal or even superior or low.Material and Methods This is a Retrospective study in autistic children. We have analyzed with autistic disorder, 47 patients had savant skills and 1 patients of MR (Mental Retardation) had savant skills. China- Wechsler Young Children Scale of Intelligence (C-WYCSI) and China-Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children(C-WISC) were used for calculating IQ levels in different age groups.Results Asperger’s syndrome (AS) children had higher verbal IQ (VIQ) and full scale IQ (FSIQ) compared to autism and high functional autism (HFA) children with statistical difference. Autism children had lower VIQ, performance IQ and FSIQ compared to HFA and AS children with statistical significance. AS children had higher values in C-WISC and CWYCSI compared to autism children.Conclusion Children with Asperger’s syndrome have higher full IQ and Sub test IQ compared with autism and HFA children.Journal of Nobel Medical College Volume 5, Number 1, Issue 8, January-July 2016, 9-13 

scholarly journals Emotional Cognitive Assessment and Enhancement for Mentally Disabled People

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (04) ◽  
pp. 88
Author(s):  
Samir Abou El-Seoud ◽  
Samaa A. Ahmed
Keyword(s):  
Asperger's Syndrome ◽  
Asperger’S Syndrome ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Mentally Disabled ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Abilities ◽  
Mind Set ◽  
Develop Program ◽  
The Way

<p class="0BodyText">Autism spectrum syndrome well known as autism. Autism was delivered within the 1920s century especially in 1944. Autism is described as a development disease that influences the social abilities, nonverbal communication or what's called body language. Human beings with Autism and Asperger’s syndrome tends to have high IQ however very low EQ[1]. In addition, person who suffers autism has a tendency to have a specific habitual, aggressive reaction while converting this habitual. The Proposed concept is to develop an algorithm/method for growing emotional intelligence. The goal of the proposed concept is to assist human beings with Autism and Asperger’s syndrome that tends to have under common EI to approach normality [2]. The program will use the high IQ of the person to increase his/her EQ. To achieve this it is intended to develop program that refuse any miss behavior, or inappropriate mind-set. The advanced application acts like human, who will no longer accept to be treated in a particular manner. To enhance ones EI, people with autism ought to be taught on:</p><p class="0BodyText"> • A way to cope with people in a manner they would accept. </p><p class="0BodyText"> • The way to apprehend his/her emotion and accept it.</p><p class="0BodyText"> • The way to express their feelings. </p><p class="0BodyText"><br /> The goal of the evolved program is to help autism users be given human beings and be selves ordinary. The program ought to teach person how to make buddies in the real existence.</p>

Differential effects on white-matter systems in high-functioning autism and Asperger's syndrome

2009 ◽  
Vol 39 (11) ◽  
pp. 1885-1893 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. M. McAlonan ◽  
C. Cheung ◽  
V. Cheung ◽  
N. Wong ◽  
J. Suckling ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
White Matter ◽  
Basal Ganglia ◽  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Asperger's Syndrome ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Asperger’S Syndrome ◽  
High Functioning Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
High Functioning ◽  
History Of

BackgroundWhether autism spectrum maps onto a spectrum of brain abnormalities and whether Asperger's syndrome (ASP) is distinct from high-functioning autism (HFA) are debated. White-matter maldevelopment is associated with autism and disconnectivity theories of autism are compelling. However, it is unknown whether children with ASP and HFA have distinct white-matter abnormalities.MethodVoxel-based morphometry mapped white-matter volumes across the whole brain in 91 children. Thirty-six had autism spectrum disorder. A history of delay in phrase speech defined half with HFA; those without delay formed the ASP group. The rest were typically developing children, balanced for age, IQ, gender, maternal language and ethnicity. White-matter volumes in HFA and ASP were compared and each contrasted with controls.ResultsWhite-matter volumes around the basal ganglia were higher in the HFA group than ASP and higher in both autism groups than controls. Compared with controls, children with HFA had less frontal and corpus callosal white matter in the left hemisphere; those with ASP had less frontal and corpus callosal white matter in the right hemisphere with more white matter in the left parietal lobe.ConclusionsHFA involved mainly left hemisphere white-matter systems; ASP affected predominantly right hemisphere white-matter systems. The impact of HFA on basal ganglia white matter was greater than ASP. This implies that aetiological factors and management options for autism spectrum disorders may be distinct. History of language acquisition is a potentially valuable marker to refine our search for causes and treatments in autism spectrum.

Linguistic processing in high-functioning adults with autism or Asperger's syndrome. Is global coherence impaired?

2000 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 1169-1187 ◽  
Author(s):  
THERESE JOLLIFFE ◽  
SIMON BARON-COHEN
Keyword(s):  
Asperger's Syndrome ◽  
Asperger’S Syndrome ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Central Coherence ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Linguistic Processing ◽  
Adults With Autism ◽  
Global Coherence ◽  
Use Context ◽  
Global Inference

Background. Linguistic processing was explored in normally intelligent adults with either autism or Asperger's syndrome, to test if global coherence was impaired. Global coherence is the ability to establish causal connections and interrelate local chunks into higher-order chunks so that most linguistic elements are linked together thematically. Since individuals with autism are hypothesized to have weak central coherence then one would predict that the clinical groups would have difficulty integrating information globally so as to derive full meaning.Methods. Two experiments were designed to test global coherence. Experiment 1 investigated whether individuals on the autism spectrum condition could arrange sentences coherently. Experiment 2 investigated whether they were less able to use context to make a global inference. Results. The clinical groups were less able to arrange sentences coherently and use context to make a global inference.Conclusions. The results suggest that individuals on the autism spectrum have impaired global coherence. Arranging sentences and making global inferences correlated highly, suggesting that central coherence may be a unitary force in these different tasks. Of the two clinical groups, the autism group had the greater deficit. The effect that such a deficit would have on one's daily life is discussed, along with possible explanations for the clinical groups' greater difficulty, and suggestions for future research.

scholarly journals Work of Support Group for Adults with Asperger’s Syndrome in Russia

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 55-62
Author(s):  
A.S. Steinberg ◽  
A.L. Voskov
Keyword(s):  
Support Group ◽  
Asperger's Syndrome ◽  
Asperger’S Syndrome ◽  
High Functioning Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Social Adaptation ◽  
Screening Tests ◽  
Autism Symptoms ◽  
High Functioning ◽  
Independent Life

Problems with Asperger's syndrome diagnostic in adults in Russia and obsolete practice of replacement of the diagnosis after age of 18 caused necessity of organization of specialized supports and efforts for social adaptation of such individuals. Experience of organization and leading the support group (that works since 2010) for adults with Asperger’s syndrome and high functioning autism is described: conditions, rules and recommendations for its organization. The discussed topics include autism awareness, social integration, personal relationships, autism symptoms and coping strategies, independent life. The participants report that the group is beneficial as a comfortable place for socialization, life experience exchange, development of self-acceptance, self-awareness and independent life skills. Involvement of psychologists in leading of some group meetings showed the necessity to extend their knowledge about autism spectrum disorders in adults. A review of screening tests and other aspects of self-diagnosis is given. Analysis of functioning of the support group for people with Asperger's syndrome and high-functioning autism confirmed large demand on this kind of help and its necessity for improving life quality.

Searching for a Place

2020 ◽  
pp. 53-82
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Fein
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
School System ◽  
Asperger's Syndrome ◽  
Social Ties ◽  
Asperger’S Syndrome ◽  
The United States ◽  
Geographically Dispersed ◽  
School Based ◽  
Syndrome Diagnosis ◽  
Shared Culture

This chapter explores the challenges faced by youth diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome and their families as they struggle to find a place for themselves in their school system. Through school-based ethnography of a district on the East Coast of the United States, this chapter argues that the experiences of these students in the special education system is an example of what sociologist Ulrich Beck calls “institutionalized individualism”: People are compelled, through large and geographically dispersed bureaucratic systems, to think of themselves as decontextualized individuals rather than members of consistent communities bound by social ties. The students’ creative attempts to create consistency in their environments are repeatedly uprooted, leading to a worsening cycle of social estrangement and brittle emotional volatility. For many of them, the Asperger’s syndrome diagnosis provided a refuge: access to Asperger’s-specific classrooms that provided a sense of safety and a shared culture, characterized by the inventive repair of broken connections both material and social.

scholarly journals The Recognition and Interactional Management of Face Threats: Comparing Neurotypical Participants and Participants with Asperger's Syndrome

2021 ◽  
pp. 019027252110030
Author(s):  
Emmi Koskinen ◽  
Melisa Stevanovic ◽  
Anssi Peräkylä
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Conversation Analysis ◽  
Asperger's Syndrome ◽  
Asperger’S Syndrome ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Erving Goffman ◽  
Face Threats

Erving Goffman has argued that the threat of losing one's face is an omnirelevant concern that penetrates all actions in encounters. However, studies have shown that compared with neurotypical individuals, persons diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder can be less preoccupied with how others perceive them and thus possibly less concerned of face in interaction. Drawing on a data set of Finnish quasinatural conversations, we use the means of conversation analysis to compare the practices of facework in storytelling sequences involving neurotypical (NT) participants and participants diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome (AS). We found differences in the ways in which the AS and NT participants in our data managed face threats in interaction, where they spontaneously assumed the roles of both storytellers and story recipients. We discuss our findings in relation to theories of self in interaction, with an aim to illuminate both typical and atypical interactional practices of facework.

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