Autism Flashcards
What is Autism?
It is a neurodevelopment disorder that includes Asperger syndrome and autism.
Who does autism affect the most?
Autism is more commonly diagnosed within boys. The ratio of autism is 4:1.
What are the 3 core/key features of Autism?
1) Social Issues
2) Communication Issues
3) Repetitive Behaviour.
Social Issues in Autism
1) Children do not respond to their own name
2) Difficultly in social situations. Prefer to be alone, do not participate in group play.
3) Difficulty in understanding others emotions or understanding that other people have different thoughts.
4) Cannot regulate their own emotions.
Communication Issues in Autism
1) Delayed Speech Development, repetition of phrases (echolalia)
2) Difficulty using gestures
3) Some may speak fluently, not understanding what they are saying, or may struggle to speak.
4) Tone of voice may not align with spoken words.
Repetitive Behaviours in Autism
1) Engage in repetitive movements like rocking, hand flapping etc.
2) Follows a certain routine and shows distress if disrupted.
3) Obsession, intense focus on specific areas.
4) Narrow range of activities with repetition, (e.g., lining up of toy cars instead of actually playing with them).
Impact of social issues on development.
1) Problems with empathy, do not understand social cues, hinder friendships.
2) They prefer isolation.
Bauminger and Kasari (2000) - Found that children with autism tend to feel lonelier, but do not understand loneliness.
Also fund that friendship in autistic people form based on shared interests.
Language and communication issues in Autism ( Focused interest and non-verbal)
1) Exhibit interest is specific topics and speak in great detail about them, but struggle to engage in a two-way conversation.
–> This difficulty limits their ability to form meaningful connections.
2) No eye contact/ less eye contact. Often at inappropriate time.
Two Explanations for Autism
1) Cognitive Explanation- Theory of mind (ToM)
2) Biological Explanation- Extreme Male Brain Theory.
What is the theory of mind?
Theory of mind is the ability to understand that other people have thoughts, beliefs, and knowledge different from one’s own.
What is the Sally-Anne test (Baron-Cohen et al., 1985)?
The Sally-Anne test is a psychological experiment used to assess theory of mind
What is the procedure for the Sally-Anne Test?
1) Two dolls, Sally and Anne, are introduced.
2) Sally has a basket, and Anne has a box.
3) Sally puts a marble in her basket and then leaves the room.
4) While Sally is gone, Anne moves the marble from the basket to her box.
5) Sally comes back, and the child is asked:
“Where will Sally look for the marble?”
What is the expected Response from the child?
If the child has ToM, they will understand that Sally will look in the basket, where she last saw the marble.
Key findings of Baron-Cohen et al?
1) Children with autism failed this test, indicating a lack of theory of mind.
–> Down syndrome and typically developing children passed the test.
What does Baron-Cohen et al show?
This test shows that children with autism struggle to understand that other may have knowledge different from their own.
Empathising and Systematising
Children with autism have low empathy as they struggle to understand the emotions of others.
Have high systematising. They excel at understanding rules, patterns and internal systems.
Sensory Processing Problems
They also experience hypersensitivity (sensitive to touch and sound), this is called sensory defensiveness.
They also experience under-responsiveness, (e.g. not responding to their name when called).
