MÓZGOWE PODŁOŻE ROZWOJU MOWY W AUTYZMIE

Although in a majority of cases, autistic children face difficulties communicating verbally, the valid diagnostic classifi cations do not identify them as the main symptoms of the disorder. The adoption of such a position has been supported by results of (mainly behavioural) research, which imply that language and speech development in the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is extremely variable and individually diversifi ed and the observed delay of its development is not unique to autism. On the other hand, the research conducted by means of neuroimaging methods shows that an atypical structure and activity of Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas, which are important for language processes, exist in the ASD. A weak structural and functional connectivity in the arcuate fasciculus, which connects these structures, has also been discovered. It is assumed that the changes arise from neurodevelopmental irregularities occurring at an early stage of foetal life and their causes are probably genetic. This study characterises speech development disorders and atypical brain development in autism referring to results of both behavioural and neuroimaging research.

Neurological profile of low-risk children at 3–4 years of age

Background. Nervous system diseases and neurodevelopmental disorders are detected in children of preschool and school age approximately thrice as frequently as nervous system disorders in neonates. To investigate this dynamic, we admitted the necessity of standard neurological assessment of children in the interim period, that is at the age of 3–4 years old.Objective. The aim of the present research is practical testing of standard neurological assessment method for children at the approximate age of 3.5 years old.Design and methods. We studied neurological status characteristics in 26 low-risk children at the age 31–48 months with the adapted standard Neurological Profile of B. C. L. Touwen.Results. It is shown that in neurological status of children of the specified age, qualified as «neurologically healthy», not less than two deviations from optimal values were detected. The most common deviations were impaired sitting up from supine position, reduction of reaction to push in sitting position and passive muscle tone changes. The average neurological profile for these children was received. The detected neurological status deviations have correlation with speech development disorders (speech development milestones and phrase speech) (r = 0.69–0.74). At the same time, we noted dissociation between values of some neurological functions and development, and that may suggest individual of development.Conclusion. Comparison of neurological morbidity in neonatal period and in early preschool age, data about influence of neurological deviations at the approximate age of 3.5 years old on the future cognitive and behavioral disorders, as well as the findings obtained in the present research about prevalence and character of individual deviations in low-risk children, may suggest a probable mechanism of neurological, cognitive, and behavioral disorders increase in elder children.

Psychoemotional features of preschool children with speech pathology and their connection with the emotional characteristics of mothers

The article deals with the problem of studying the psychoemotional characteristics of preschool children in their connection with the features of interaction in the «mother-child» dyad. The relevance of the work is determined by the increasing number of children with speech pathology. A number of works by Russian and foreign authors are devoted to the study of the psychological characteristics of preschool children with speech development disorders. The novelty of the presented research is to consider this issue through the prism of the family, in particular, mother-child emotional interactions. This study reflects the importance of developing the emotional competence of mothers raising preschool children, namely: teaching mothers to understand their own emotions, control expression, the ability to perceive the child's condition, understand its causes and influence it; and it justifies the high importance and necessity of including mothers in the rehabilitation process when working with preschoolers with speech pathologies. The study involved 120 pairs of «child with speech pathology – mother», divided into three groups according to age. The first included children of young preschool age (3-4 years old, 35 couples), the second – middle preschool age (4-5 years old, 54 couples), the third – senior preschool age (5-6 years old, 31 couples). Similarly, three normotypic groups were formed according to age ranges, the first of which included 32 child-mother pairs, the second – 36 child-mother pairs, the third – 35 child-mother pairs, a total of 103 dyads with normotypic speech developmentThe study found that the mothers of preschoolers with speech pathology differ in the level of development of emotional intelligence components, the characteristics of emotional interaction with the child from mothers raising regulatory developing children. Links have been determined between the level of development of the emotional intelligence of the mother, the features of maternal-child emotional interaction and the psychoemotional features of preschoolers who have speech pathology.

Study of the features of fears in preschool children with impaired speech development in comparison with normally developing peers in Moscow City

Currently, the number of children with impaired speech development is constantly increasing, but the emotional difficulties that exist in this category of children remain insufficiently studied. Regional studies are particularly important in this area, and they provide the best insight into which emotional disturbances are related to the structure of the disability and the family situation, and which are related to general social tensions in a particular region and especially in a metropolitan setting. This article presents the research data on the psychological study of fears in children with various speech development disorders and their normally developing peers. The aim of the research is to identify and study the characteristics of fears in preschoolers with speech development impairments in Moscow City. The research methods. The study and analysis of medical, psychological and pedagogical literature, observation, conversation, the study of medical and pedagogical documentation, collection and analysis of anamnestic data, analysis of the products of children’s activities, modified questionnaire by A.I. Zakharov “fears in the houses”, Peter Muris’s modified test “fear levels”, a questionnaire for parents to identify the fears of children and parents, test questionnaire of child-parent relationship (QPR) by A.Y. Vargi and V.V. Stolin. methods of mathematical statistics, quantitative and qualitative analysis of the experimental data. The results of the study. Experimental data were obtained and systematized. It characterizes the features of fears of older preschoolers with different impaired speech development in comparison with normally developing peers. The description of the dominant fears of preschool children and their specific features inherent in children with speech disorders is given. Data were obtained on predisposition to an increased number of fears in the male part of the examined group of children. There were identified the average fears indicators that were higher than the existing standards for all the studied groups.

MECHANISMS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL ADAPTATION OF HEARING-IMPAIRED STUDENTS OF UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES

Тhe article deals with issues related to hearing-impaired students of higher education institutions and colleges. These are young people with partial hearing loss with possible speech development disorders. Impaired, weak hearing is likely to be either congenital, acquired, or inherited diseases or the consequences of injuries. In modern society, a student with poor hearing is not only a young person engaged in the process of learning, but a person who is forced to adapt day by day to interact with society to solve hourly tasks and, unfortunately, most often finds himself not in the society of hearing people, but "next" to him.

Secondary speech therapy prophylaxis aimed at children with low birth weight – a part of research

In the paper, the results of the study of secondary speech therapy prophylaxis aimed at children with low birth weight (preterm babies and babies born at term but with intrauterine growth retardation). The study group consisted of 187 children with a birth weight below 2500 g. Low birth weight is one of the risk factors for various developmental disorders, including disorders of the development of language communication. That is why early identification of the first symptoms of language acquisition (speech development) disorders is so important. The aim of the undertaken research was to analyse the activities in the field of secondary speech therapy prophylaxis, covering this risk group.

Children with Language Disorders or Late Bloomers – the problem of differential diagnosis

Communication problems are often the first noticeable symptom of developmental abnormalities. About 15% of children at the age of 2 years demonstrate a lower level of speech expression than their peers. Speech development disorders may constitute either symptoms of global developmental delay or only isolated difficulties. One of the main challenges for professionals dealing with early development support is recognizing whether a child whose linguistic competence differs significantly from that of their peers suffers from a specific language impairment, or whether they belong to the group of ‘late bloomers’ who at some point, without the intervention of a specialist, will achieve an appropriate level of communication skills. Although a differential diagnosis can be extremely difficult, the analysis of the literature leads to the conclusion that there are some markers that can aid a specialist in establishing an accurate diagnosis.