pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified
What is the neurodiversity perspective on autism?
increasing recognition of autism as a difference rather than disorder, promotes social model of disability - can gloss over serious difficulties that are not obviously social in nature
What did the DSM-V say about autism?
clinically significant persistent deficits in social communication and interactions - manifested by deficits in:
social-emotional reciprocity
non-verbal communication
developing, maintaining and understanding relationships
The DSM-V say there were repeated patterns of behaviour, interests and activities manifested by what of the following?
stereotyped motor/verbal behaviour or unusual sensory behaviours
excessive adherence to routines and ritualised patterns of behaviour
restricted/fixated interests
abnormal responses to sensory stimuli
symptoms present in early childhood
What was Jain et al.'s 2015 study on MMR vaccines?
95,727 children in USA, with older siblings
those with older siblings with ASD - 134 had ASD v 890 with unaffected siblings
Receiving vaccine not associated with increased risk of ASD, regardless whether older sibling had ASD
Why is the autism diagnosis increasing?
incidence is constant but prevalence increases
better/changed diagnosis
broader criteria
incidence increase?
environment
prenatal injury/disease
vaccines
What are the statistics of autism in the UK?
2% of people in UK have learning disability
60-70% of autistic people in UK may have learning disability (NHS, 2012)
29% of people with learning disabilities in UK are autistic
What is the downside to Autism?
feeling alienated/misunderstood
bullying of children with ASD is common, bullies single out children who are different (Cappadocia et al., 2012)
What are the two models and their view of autism?
Medical: things are going wrong as autistic person is behaving/feeling different
Social: things are going wrong as people around the autistic person are behaving in a way that is not well matched to needs of autistic person
What was Lancet's 2016 study on improving communication with autistic people?
152 children with ASD, aged 2-4
2x a month for 6 months, parents watched videos of their interactions with children - therapist paused video periodically to discuss methods parents could do better to engage with their children and boost communication skills
6 years later, of those in intervention group, 46% were considered to have severe autism, compared to 63% in control group
What was Watkins et al. (2015) review of peer-mediated programs?
review of fostering social interventions between autistic and non-autistic students in inclusive settings
findings:
improved social skills
increased social inclusion
long-term impact: positive social interactions continued beyond intervention period
limited research on academic outcomes - did not measure impact of peer training on academic performance
What was Roberts and Simpson, 2016, study on peer sensitivity training?
reviewed various peer awareness interventions and their effectiveness in increasing understanding and acceptance of autistic children in schools
positive impact on social inclusion
reduced stigma
varied program effectiveness - ongoing programs have greater long-term impact