scholarly journals The Psychosocial Effects of Having a Sibling with Autism Spectrum Disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jesseca Perlman ◽  
Nina Howe
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Emotional Regulation ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Sibling Relationship ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Heterosexual Couples ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Psychosocial Effects

Siblings play an important role in one another’s overall development; thus, the sibling relationship is an important subsystem within the family unit. However, in families where one child has an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis, the dynamics between siblings may be different than in families with typically developing children due to the associated deficits in communication. Therefore, this mixed-method study examined the perceptions of six typically developing children regarding their relationship with a sibling with autism. Parents were heterosexual couples, and families were white and mostly middle class. Semi-structured interviews and questionnaires regarding the sibling relationship were administered to the typically developing child. Identification of major themes followed by focused coding was conducted to capture the essence of what was said and to categorize the most frequent themes. Overall, typically developing children highlighted both positive and negative features of their relationships, for example play, feeling proud, embarrassment, and anger. Additionally, children seemed to be at a loss for coping strategies they considered helpful, perhaps due to their own poor and/or developing emotional regulation skills. The findings emphasize the need to support typically developing children and their personal and social development.

scholarly journals Developmental Language Disorder and Autism: Commonalities and Differences on Language

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 589
Author(s):  
Natasa Georgiou ◽  
George Spanoudis
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Language Impairment ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Autism Group ◽  
Developmental Conditions

Language and communication deficits characterize both autism spectrum disorder and developmental language disorder, and the possibility of there being a common profile of these is a matter of tireless debate in the research community. This experimental study addresses the relation of these two developmental conditions in the critical topic of language. Α total of 103 children (79 males, 24 females) participated in the present study. Specifically, the study’s sample consisted of 40 children with autism, 28 children with developmental language disorder, and 35 typically developing children between 6 and 12 years old. All children completed language and cognitive measures. The results showed that there is a subgroup inside the autism group of children who demonstrate language difficulties similar to children with developmental language disorder. Specifically, two different subgroups were derived from the autism group; those with language impairment and those without. Both autism and language-impaired groups scored lower than typically developing children on all language measures indicating a common pathology in language ability. The results of this study shed light on the relation between the two disorders, supporting the assumption of a subgroup with language impairment inside the autism spectrum disorder population. The common picture presented by the two developmental conditions highlights the need for further research in the field.

Functional changes during visuo-spatial working memory in autism spectrum disorder: 2-year longitudinal functional magnetic resonance imaging study

Autism ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 639-652 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanessa M Vogan ◽  
Benjamin R Morgan ◽  
Mary Lou Smith ◽  
Margot J Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Neural Activity ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Functional Changes

This study examined functional changes longitudinally over 2 years in neural correlates associated with working memory in youth with and without autism spectrum disorder, and the impact of increasing cognitive load. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging and a visuo-spatial 1-back task with four levels of difficulty. A total of 14 children with autism spectrum disorder and 15 typically developing children (ages 7–13) were included at baseline and followed up approximately 2 years later. Despite similar task performance between groups, differences were evident in the developmental trajectories of neural responses. Typically developing children showed greater load-dependent activation which intensified over time in the frontal, parietal and occipital lobes and the right fusiform gyrus, compared to those with autism spectrum disorder. Children with autism spectrum disorder showed minimal age-related changes in load-dependent activation, but greater longitudinal load-dependent deactivation in default mode network compared to typically developing children. Results suggest inadequate modulation of neural activity with increasing cognitive demands in children with autism spectrum disorder, which does not mature into adolescence, unlike their typically developing peers. Diminished ability for children with autism spectrum disorder to modulate neural activity during this period of maturation suggests that they may be more vulnerable to the increasing complexity of social and academic demands as they progress through adolescence than their peers.

scholarly journals Sibling Relationships, Personality Traits, Emotional, and Behavioral Difficulties in Autism Spectrum Disorders

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Longobardi ◽  
L. E. Prino ◽  
F. G. M. Gastaldi ◽  
T. Jungert
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Sibling Relationships ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Sibling Relationship ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Behavioral Difficulties ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Emotional Symptoms ◽  
The Impact

This study focused on parents’ perceptions of the quality of sibling relationship and its association with some behavioral and emotional characteristics of the typically developing sibling. The participants were parents of children with autism spectrum disorder and typically developing siblings. The sample size was 43. The group comprised 14 fathers (32.6%) and 29 mothers (67.4%) aged 33–53 years (M=43.56; SD = 5.23). The parents completed measures of siblings’ emotional and behavioral difficulties, siblings’ personality, and sibling relationships and their impact on families and siblings. The results showed that behavioral difficulties such as emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention, and peer relationship problems were significantly associated with negative sibling relationships—characterized by rivalry, aggression, avoidance, and teaching behavior toward the brother or sister with an autism spectrum disorder. The implications are that sibling-focused interventions should focus on improving negative sibling relationships to reduce the impact on the difficulties of the typical development of the sibling of both genders and shape the content and delivery framework accordingly. This can be done by providing skills and approaches for enhancing sibling relationships so both parties benefit.

Memory enhancements from active control of learning in children with autism spectrum disorder

Autism ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (8) ◽  
pp. 1995-2007
Author(s):  
Valentina Fantasia ◽  
Douglas B. Markant ◽  
Giovanni Valeri ◽  
Nicholas Perri ◽  
Azzurra Ruggeri
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Active Learning ◽  
Active Control ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Inclusive Learning ◽  
Active Condition

Previous research with typically developing children and adults shows that active control of the learning experience leads to enhanced episodic memory, as compared with conditions lacking this control. The present study investigates whether similar advantages can be found in children with autism spectrum disorder. In this study, 6–12-year-old autistic children ( N = 29) participated in a simple memory game on a touchscreen tablet, in which they were asked to remember 64 objects presented in four blocks of 16. In two of the blocks, children could decide the order and pacing of study (active condition), whereas in the other two blocks, they passively observed the active study decisions of a previous participant (yoked condition). We found that recognition memory was more accurate for objects studied in the active compared with the yoked condition, even after a week-long delay. The magnitude of the effect was comparable with that obtained in previous studies with typically developing children and adults, suggesting a robustness for the benefits of active learning that goes beyond what previously hypothesized, extending to special populations. We discuss how these findings may help develop pedagogical interventions that leverage the active learning approach to promote inclusive learning. Lay abstract Research with adults and typically developing children has shown that being able to actively control their learning experience, that is, to decide what to learn, when, and at what pace, can boost learning in a variety of contexts. In particular, previous research has shown a robust advantage of active control for episodic memory as compared with conditions lacking this control. In this article, we explore the potential of active control to improve learning of 6- to 12-year-old children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. We presented them with a simple memory game on a touchscreen tablet, in which children were asked to recall as many of the presented objects as possible. For half of the objects, children could decide the order and pacing of study (active condition); for the other half, they passively observed the study decisions of a previous participant (yoked condition). We found that recognition memory was more accurate when children could actively control the order, pace, and frequency of the study experience, even after a week-long delay. We discuss how teachers and educators might promote active learning approaches in educational and pedagogical applications to support inclusive learning.

scholarly journals Object-directed imitation in autism spectrum disorder is differentially influenced by motoric task complexity, but not social contextual cues

Autism ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 199-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lacey Chetcuti ◽  
Kristelle Hudry ◽  
Megan Grant ◽  
Giacomo Vivanti
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Task Complexity ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Social Motivation ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Motor Execution ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Socially Responsive

We examined the role of social motivation and motor execution factors in object-directed imitation difficulties in autism spectrum disorder. A series of to-be-imitated actions was presented to 35 children with autism spectrum disorder and 20 typically developing children on an Apple® iPad® by a socially responsive or aloof model, under conditions of low and high motor demand. There were no differences in imitation performance (i.e. the number of actions reproduced within a fixed sequence), for either group, in response to a model who acted socially responsive or aloof. Children with autism spectrum disorder imitated the high motor demand task more poorly than the low motor demand task, while imitation performance for typically developing children was equivalent across the low and high motor demand conditions. Furthermore, imitative performance in the autism spectrum disorder group was unrelated to social reciprocity, though positively associated with fine motor coordination. These results suggest that difficulties in object-directed imitation in autism spectrum disorder are the result of motor execution difficulties, not reduced social motivation.

scholarly journals The attitudes of typically developing adolescents towards their sibling with autism spectrum disorder

2017 ◽  
Vol 64 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Van der Merwe ◽  
Juan Bornman ◽  
Dana Donohue ◽  
Michal Harty
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Sibling Relationship ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Friedman Analysis ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Positive Attitudes

Background: Understanding how the cognitive, emotional and behavioural components of sibling attitudes interact with one another at various stages of a sibling’s lifespan will allow clinicians to provide better support to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their families. However, no research exists which focusses on describing the attitudes of adolescent siblings of children with ASD within the South African context towards their sibling with an ASD. The primary aim of this study was to investigate how typically developing adolescents recall their past attitudes and describe their present attitudes towards their sibling with an ASD.Methods: Thirty typically developing adolescents who have siblings with ASD were selected to complete the survey instrument, the Lifespan Sibling Relationship Scale, using a cross-sectional design.Results: Results indicate that the measure has internal consistency within this sample. Wilcoxon signed-ranks tests were used to test for significant differences between the mean values for the two self-reported time periods. Friedman analysis of variances (ANOVAs) was used to test for significant differences in the three components of attitudes, namely affect, behaviour and cognition. Results indicate that participants held more positive attitudes towards their siblings with ASD as adolescents compared with when they were younger and that adolescents rated their current emotions towards and beliefs about their sibling with ASD to be more positive than their current interaction experiences.Conclusion: As siblings’ attitudes appear to change over time, clinicians should use a lifespan approach to sibling attitudes when designing and implementing supports for siblings of children with ASD.

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