Chapter 9 Flashcards
What is the study of child development?
- intellectual, social, emotional
- for the past 50 years
- focused on brain and central nervous system
what are neurodevelopment disorders?
Impairments centred in areas as the brain and central nervous system
What are the two key features of neurodevelopment disorders?
- Neurological dysfunction that affects the capacity of the individual for intellectual, social, and sometimes physical development
- struggle to fit in and be fully included in society
- focus on being biological in nature and posing challenges to social functioning and educational achievement
what makes socially focused approaches less of a priority?
focus on neurology and attempting to ‘fix’ the disorder
What is ADHD characterized by?
Inattentive, hyperactive, impulsive behaviours
What is the stereotype of ADHD?
boy difficulty sitting still, being organized, concentrating, resisting impulses, who may be aggressive
How are symptoms typically first noticed in ADHD?
In school where these behaviours are deemed problematic
What is the criteria of diagnosis for ADHD?
6/18 symptoms consistently for 6 months
What are the three types of ADHD?
ADHD-I = inattentive type
ADHD-H = Hyperactivity and impulsivity
ADHD-C = Combined type
*Lacks appreciation of internal lived experience
What are characteristics of ADHD inattentive type?
difficulty with attention, difficulty breaking large projects down, losing objects, forgetfulness, avoidance of tasks needing attention, distractibility, overlooking details, daydreaming, appearing not to listen
6 or more of nine traits for at least 6 months
What are characteristics of ADHD hyperactivity and impulsivity type?
excessive talking, fidgeting, difficulty sitting still, difficulty with quiet, difficulty engaging in leisure activities, difficulty resting, interrupting, restlessness, impatience
6 or more of nine traits for at least 6 months
What are some criticisms of ADHD criteria for diagnosis
- criteria may be explained by immaturity
- children may be inappropriately diagnosed
- contextual influences on diagnosis
What are some characteristics of autism?
- difficulty understanding the need to be social and managing social interactions
- struggle to manage social life and social expectations
- increase prevalence as more urban and complex
- no clear cause
What is the evolutionary perspective of autism?
social relations important to success and survival, so autism may have brought some advantages for individuals as well
What were two developments that made ADHD a disorder?
- Terms “hyperkinetic impulse disorder” and “hyperkinetic behaviour syndrome” were coined
- Geopolitical context - American losing the brain race with soviets
How did America losing the brain race impact ADHD?
- strive to improve academic performance
- classrooms doing things -> by the book sitting quietly
- children expected to go on to post secondary
- behaviours associated with underachievement = what is now ADHD
What other aspects led to emergence of ADHD?
- WW2 - importance of psychiatry to keep soldiers healthy to fight
- rise of biological and social psychology
- baby boomer generation
What was the emergence of autism like
- child development = focus of research
- childhood understood as developmental period that could influence adult mental health
- large institutions closing and more apparent in communities
- urge to be more successful in school
- children with unusual behaviours = labeled and and pathologized
- narrowing what was considered ‘normal’ as society and schools changed
What are some explanations of ADHD?
- “general neurological deficit”/difference
- brain injury or infection?
- gene?
- food allergies
- faulty parenting / mother blame
- sleep disruption?
corporal punishment ban led to behavioural problems? - social construction.. just normal variations of childhood behaviour?… non white boys disproportionally diagnosed
What was the Feingold diet?
diet that eliminated many chemical additives and was popular with parents of children with ADHD
What is one critique on ADHD and the Pharma companies?
ADHD emerged due to aggressive pharmaceutical marketing to parents and school admins struggling with ‘problem’ children… they had stimulant meds before disorder so they had interest to repurpose them for children
What are some explanations about autism?
- genetic? environmental? psychoanalytic? behavioural? dietary? social?
- parenting may be a cause?? cold parenting/refrigerator mothers?
- food allergies
- mmr vaccines
What is the critique on the theory of cold parenting?
- discredited due to questionable credentials
- poor research
- plagiarism
- abuse in research…
What was wrong with the Wakefield paper in the lancet?
- false claims about methods and ethics approval
- small sample size and recruitment problems (selection bias)
still influential and source of disinformation… disease reemergence from anti vax
What is Ritalin?
- originally used in 50s for adults
- now for children ADHD
- ineffective for 20% of patients
- controversial = drug dependency?
- available on illicit market often misused and diverted (uni and college)
how did doctors/pharma respond to controversies in ADHD meds?
- take drug holidays
- use other additional meds to counter side effects
- no studies of effects of stimulants on brain growth and development (but physical growth examined)
What are some treatment options for ADHD?
- meds
- dietary
- educational interventions
- therapies (CBT)
- neurofeedback
- mind body therapy
-holistic - drugs perhaps should be a last resort
- treated as a lifelong condition
What are scientist “in the business of ADHD”?
subscribing to a particular view of eitology and specific research methods, likely none are from a social science background or employing a critical perspective, may receive funding from Pharma industry…. other conflicts of interest
What are treatments for autism?
- no meds specifically for it
- meds used to treat other conditions or symptoms and behaviours of autism
- limited evidence supporting non-dharma interventions
- some interventions harmful (chelation and secretin therapies) or other (facilitated communication)
What is the neurodiveristy movement and goals?
- autism and other mental illnesses are not pathologies but part of the normal spectrum of human experience and behaviour
- shouldn’t be cured, positive part of person’s identity and experience, pride
- help people adapt to an inflexible society
- make world more accommodating to diverse people
- challenges notions of normalcy, development, and mental illness - draws attention to social conditions and social context
What are some critiques of The Neurodiversity movement
- assumes autism is a neurological issue
- oversimplification or reductionist - casting experiences as homogenous and overlooking diversity
- most tend to be high functioning and successful
What was Sputnik and role to ADHD
child centered, hands on, flexible approach in kids education not suited to produce scientists and engineers needed to win space race
What was the GI Bill?
Helped create the expectation that postsecondary ed was necessary for success
what does pathologise mean
treat behaviours previously understood as normal spectrum behaviour as dysfunction, abnormal, or unhealthy
