Pub Date : 2017-06-01DOI: 10.1177/2396941517714945
Jon Brock, Nufar Sukenik, N. Friedmann
Background and aims On average, autistic individuals make more errors than control participants when reading aloud sentences containing heterophonic homographs—written words with multiple meanings and pronunciations. This finding is widely interpreted within the framework of “weak central coherence” as evidence for impaired sentence-level comprehension resulting in a failure to disambiguate the homograph meaning. However, consistent findings at the group level belie considerable individual variation. Our aim here was to determine whether that variation was reliable and whether it could be predicted. Methods We developed a Hebrew version of the homograph-reading test, containing many more items than is possible in English. The test was administered to 18 native-Hebrew speaking autistic children and adolescents, along with a battery of reading and language assessments. Results Participants with autism showed wide individual variation in performance on the homograph-reading task. Using a mixed random effects logistic regression analysis, we showed that measures of autism severity, single word reading, and single word comprehension all left reliable individual variation unaccounted for and none accounted for variation beyond that associated with the child’s age. Instead, homograph reading was best predicted by performance on a picture naming task, which accounted for unique variation beyond age and each of the other predictors. Conclusions Poor performance of autistic individuals on the English version of the homograph-reading task has until now been characterized as evidence for a comprehension deficit in autism. However, the results of the current study lead us to propose a new working hypothesis—that difficulties affecting some autistic individuals reflect impairment in the use of semantics to guide the selection of the appropriate phonological form during speech production. This hypothesis is consistent with the strong association between homograph reading and picture naming. It may also help explain the inconsistent pattern of results across studies using different measures of linguistic “central coherence.” Implications The results of this preliminary study should be replicated before firm conclusions are drawn. Nonetheless, the study serves to emphasize the importance of considering within-group as well as between-group variations in studies of autism. It also provides a worked example showing how mixed random effect analyses can be used to explore individual differences, distinguishing between genuine variation and psychometric noise.
{"title":"Individual differences in autistic children’s homograph reading: Evidence from Hebrew","authors":"Jon Brock, Nufar Sukenik, N. Friedmann","doi":"10.1177/2396941517714945","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941517714945","url":null,"abstract":"Background and aims On average, autistic individuals make more errors than control participants when reading aloud sentences containing heterophonic homographs—written words with multiple meanings and pronunciations. This finding is widely interpreted within the framework of “weak central coherence” as evidence for impaired sentence-level comprehension resulting in a failure to disambiguate the homograph meaning. However, consistent findings at the group level belie considerable individual variation. Our aim here was to determine whether that variation was reliable and whether it could be predicted. Methods We developed a Hebrew version of the homograph-reading test, containing many more items than is possible in English. The test was administered to 18 native-Hebrew speaking autistic children and adolescents, along with a battery of reading and language assessments. Results Participants with autism showed wide individual variation in performance on the homograph-reading task. Using a mixed random effects logistic regression analysis, we showed that measures of autism severity, single word reading, and single word comprehension all left reliable individual variation unaccounted for and none accounted for variation beyond that associated with the child’s age. Instead, homograph reading was best predicted by performance on a picture naming task, which accounted for unique variation beyond age and each of the other predictors. Conclusions Poor performance of autistic individuals on the English version of the homograph-reading task has until now been characterized as evidence for a comprehension deficit in autism. However, the results of the current study lead us to propose a new working hypothesis—that difficulties affecting some autistic individuals reflect impairment in the use of semantics to guide the selection of the appropriate phonological form during speech production. This hypothesis is consistent with the strong association between homograph reading and picture naming. It may also help explain the inconsistent pattern of results across studies using different measures of linguistic “central coherence.” Implications The results of this preliminary study should be replicated before firm conclusions are drawn. Nonetheless, the study serves to emphasize the importance of considering within-group as well as between-group variations in studies of autism. It also provides a worked example showing how mixed random effect analyses can be used to explore individual differences, distinguishing between genuine variation and psychometric noise.","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/2396941517714945","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45934146","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-05-01DOI: 10.1177/2396941517706172
K. Sproston, F. Sedgewick, L. Crane
Background and aims If a child’s behaviour does not conform to school policy or causes harm to either peers or staff, they may be temporarily or permanently excluded from school. Whilst it is unlawful to exclude children due to their needs, school exclusion is common amongst children with special educational needs, including autism. Currently, little is known about experiences of school exclusion from the perspectives of autistic students and/or their parents. This is particularly the case for girls on the autism spectrum. Methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight autistic girls and their parents (seven mothers, one father). Interviews explored experiences of mainstream schooling; alternative educational provisions that were offered (if any); the school exclusion process; and the girls’ current educational provision. As well as asking the girls and their parents about positive and negative aspects of their past and current experiences, participants were asked to reflect on areas for potential improvements. Results Interviews were analysed using thematic analysis and three key themes emerged from the data: inappropriate school environments (including problems with the sensory environment, difficulties when placed with inappropriate peers and general pressures of mainstream classrooms), tensions in school relationships (including problems with staff and peers, alongside a general lack of communication), and problems with staff responses (including a perceived lack of understanding of the girls’ needs and a lack of appropriate support being provided, resulting in ‘battles’ between parents and schools). Conclusions The themes and subthemes that emerged from the interviews were not unique to autistic girls. Indeed, issues such as inappropriate school environments, a lack of staff understanding and breakdowns in relationships have been repeatedly raised by parents and young autistic people (mostly boys) in other studies, albeit in different environments. Nevertheless, the results highlight that more needs to be done to positively influence the direction of the girls’ educational journeys. Implications To improve the inclusion of autistic girls, it is recommended that educational establishments be proactive in developing inclusive environments, build positive relationships (both in and outside of the classroom) and, if exclusion is unavoidable, better support students both before and after the process.
{"title":"Autistic girls and school exclusion: Perspectives of students and their parents","authors":"K. Sproston, F. Sedgewick, L. Crane","doi":"10.1177/2396941517706172","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941517706172","url":null,"abstract":"Background and aims If a child’s behaviour does not conform to school policy or causes harm to either peers or staff, they may be temporarily or permanently excluded from school. Whilst it is unlawful to exclude children due to their needs, school exclusion is common amongst children with special educational needs, including autism. Currently, little is known about experiences of school exclusion from the perspectives of autistic students and/or their parents. This is particularly the case for girls on the autism spectrum. Methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight autistic girls and their parents (seven mothers, one father). Interviews explored experiences of mainstream schooling; alternative educational provisions that were offered (if any); the school exclusion process; and the girls’ current educational provision. As well as asking the girls and their parents about positive and negative aspects of their past and current experiences, participants were asked to reflect on areas for potential improvements. Results Interviews were analysed using thematic analysis and three key themes emerged from the data: inappropriate school environments (including problems with the sensory environment, difficulties when placed with inappropriate peers and general pressures of mainstream classrooms), tensions in school relationships (including problems with staff and peers, alongside a general lack of communication), and problems with staff responses (including a perceived lack of understanding of the girls’ needs and a lack of appropriate support being provided, resulting in ‘battles’ between parents and schools). Conclusions The themes and subthemes that emerged from the interviews were not unique to autistic girls. Indeed, issues such as inappropriate school environments, a lack of staff understanding and breakdowns in relationships have been repeatedly raised by parents and young autistic people (mostly boys) in other studies, albeit in different environments. Nevertheless, the results highlight that more needs to be done to positively influence the direction of the girls’ educational journeys. Implications To improve the inclusion of autistic girls, it is recommended that educational establishments be proactive in developing inclusive environments, build positive relationships (both in and outside of the classroom) and, if exclusion is unavoidable, better support students both before and after the process.","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/2396941517706172","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42390746","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-03-01DOI: 10.1177/2396941517699215
Fouad Alshaban, Mohammed Aldosari, Zakaria H El Sayed, Mohammed Tolefat, Saba El Hag, Hawra Al Shammari, Iman Ghazal, E. Fombonne
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is an increasingly prevalent disorder. Although around 15% of cases are caused by specific genetic causes, most cases involve a complex and variable combination of genetic risk and environmental factors that are not yet identified. There is a paucity of studies on ASD in Qatar, mostly in the form of case reports and genetic causes. The current study was designed to describe the clinical characteristics of ASD and its correlates in Qatar. Individuals with ASD were recruited from the Shafallah Center for Children with Special Needs which is the largest special needs center in Qatar. Within the sample of 171 individuals with ASD, 47% were ethnic Qataris, while 53% were nonethnic Qataris (Arabs and other nationalities). The analysis included the following factors: nationality, age, gender, socioeconomic status, consanguinity, prenatal/postnatal complications, and comorbidities. Eighty percent of the identified cases were males, with a 4:1 male to female ratio. Additionally, 83% of the families had one proband, 9.9% with 2 probands, and 7.1% with more than two. Comorbid conditions included: intellectual disabilities (ID) in 83% and epilepsy in 18.8%. 76.6% of subjects were nonverbal. There were 3 (1.8%) children with Rett’s syndrome, 3 (1.8%) with Fragile X, and 1 (0.6%) with tuberous sclerosis. There are currently no publications that clarify the mean age of diagnosis in Qatar, however, the present study showed that more than half of the diagnosed cases were among the ages of 7–14 years (56%). The effect of consanguinity as a risk factor was not found to be significant.
{"title":"Autism spectrum disorder in Qatar: Profiles and correlates of a large clinical sample","authors":"Fouad Alshaban, Mohammed Aldosari, Zakaria H El Sayed, Mohammed Tolefat, Saba El Hag, Hawra Al Shammari, Iman Ghazal, E. Fombonne","doi":"10.1177/2396941517699215","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941517699215","url":null,"abstract":"Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is an increasingly prevalent disorder. Although around 15% of cases are caused by specific genetic causes, most cases involve a complex and variable combination of genetic risk and environmental factors that are not yet identified. There is a paucity of studies on ASD in Qatar, mostly in the form of case reports and genetic causes. The current study was designed to describe the clinical characteristics of ASD and its correlates in Qatar. Individuals with ASD were recruited from the Shafallah Center for Children with Special Needs which is the largest special needs center in Qatar. Within the sample of 171 individuals with ASD, 47% were ethnic Qataris, while 53% were nonethnic Qataris (Arabs and other nationalities). The analysis included the following factors: nationality, age, gender, socioeconomic status, consanguinity, prenatal/postnatal complications, and comorbidities. Eighty percent of the identified cases were males, with a 4:1 male to female ratio. Additionally, 83% of the families had one proband, 9.9% with 2 probands, and 7.1% with more than two. Comorbid conditions included: intellectual disabilities (ID) in 83% and epilepsy in 18.8%. 76.6% of subjects were nonverbal. There were 3 (1.8%) children with Rett’s syndrome, 3 (1.8%) with Fragile X, and 1 (0.6%) with tuberous sclerosis. There are currently no publications that clarify the mean age of diagnosis in Qatar, however, the present study showed that more than half of the diagnosed cases were among the ages of 7–14 years (56%). The effect of consanguinity as a risk factor was not found to be significant.","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":"2 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/2396941517699215","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41660821","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-03-01DOI: 10.1177/2396941517699214
Susan Killmeyer, Louise A. Kaczmarek
Children are diagnosed at increasingly earlier ages with autism spectrum disorder, characterized by diminished levels of social orienting and engagement. Parent-mediated interventions incorporating the use of responsive parent behaviors have shown promise for use with young children with autism spectrum disorder to increase a variety of social-communication behaviors. This study examined the manner in which parents acquired and used a set of responsive parenting techniques with their young children with fidelity and investigated the associations of fidelity use of these techniques with changes in child joint engagement outcomes. Although parents began the training phase demonstrating low levels of responsive parenting behaviors, they acquired and implemented a specific set of responsive parent techniques with their children with ongoing fidelity, and the use of these techniques was collaterally associated with increased levels of joint engagement in two of the three participant children. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
{"title":"Parent training and joint engagement in young children with autism spectrum disorder","authors":"Susan Killmeyer, Louise A. Kaczmarek","doi":"10.1177/2396941517699214","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941517699214","url":null,"abstract":"Children are diagnosed at increasingly earlier ages with autism spectrum disorder, characterized by diminished levels of social orienting and engagement. Parent-mediated interventions incorporating the use of responsive parent behaviors have shown promise for use with young children with autism spectrum disorder to increase a variety of social-communication behaviors. This study examined the manner in which parents acquired and used a set of responsive parenting techniques with their young children with fidelity and investigated the associations of fidelity use of these techniques with changes in child joint engagement outcomes. Although parents began the training phase demonstrating low levels of responsive parenting behaviors, they acquired and implemented a specific set of responsive parent techniques with their children with ongoing fidelity, and the use of these techniques was collaterally associated with increased levels of joint engagement in two of the three participant children. Implications for research and practice are discussed.","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/2396941517699214","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47315037","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-02-01DOI: 10.1177/2396941517694626
C. Manning, M. Tibber, S. Dakin
Background and aims The vision of autistic people has been characterised as focused on detail, with a disinclination (or reduced ability) to integrate information into coherent ‘wholes’. In contrast to this view, we recently demonstrated enhanced integration of visual motion signals in autistic children compared to typically developing children. Here, we aimed to investigate the robustness of our finding of increased motion integration in autism with a new sample of children and to determine whether increased integration in autistic children would extend to a static, orientation judgement. Methods We presented motion and orientation equivalent noise and coherence tasks to 46 autistic children aged 6 to 14 years and 45 typically developing children matched in age and non-verbal IQ. The equivalent noise tasks consisted of two interleaved conditions: a high-noise condition in which children judged the average direction or orientation of elements whose range of direction or orientations was manipulated, and a no-noise condition in which children judged the direction or orientation of elements sharing the same direction or orientation. Equivalent noise modelling provided estimates of internal noise (the precision with which children can estimate the orientation/direction of one element) and global sampling (how many elements children are effectively using to judge the overall orientation/direction). Children also completed coherence tasks in which the proportion of signal elements sharing the same direction or orientation amidst otherwise random noise elements was manipulated. We assessed group differences using a combination of frequentist and Bayesian statistical approaches. Results Analysis of the data in this new sample alone did not provide sufficient evidence either in favour or against the hypothesis of increased integration in autism. However, when combining motion data from this and the original experiment, autistic children exhibited superior integration of direction information in the high-noise condition compared to typically developing children, with similar no-noise and coherence thresholds. Equivalent noise modelling of these data revealed increased sampling in autistic children for motion information but no conclusive evidence for atypical levels of internal noise. There was no evidence of differences between autistic and typically developing children in the orientation equivalent noise and coherence tasks. Conclusions Overall, autistic children effectively integrated more direction information than typically developing children. However, the groups overlapped considerably and there was substantial individual variability, so that the effect may be difficult to detect in small groups. There was no indication of atypical integration of orientation in the current study, although larger samples will be required in order to provide conclusive evidence. Implications These results help characterise the nature of sensory processing in autism,
{"title":"Visual integration of direction and orientation information in autistic children","authors":"C. Manning, M. Tibber, S. Dakin","doi":"10.1177/2396941517694626","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941517694626","url":null,"abstract":"Background and aims The vision of autistic people has been characterised as focused on detail, with a disinclination (or reduced ability) to integrate information into coherent ‘wholes’. In contrast to this view, we recently demonstrated enhanced integration of visual motion signals in autistic children compared to typically developing children. Here, we aimed to investigate the robustness of our finding of increased motion integration in autism with a new sample of children and to determine whether increased integration in autistic children would extend to a static, orientation judgement. Methods We presented motion and orientation equivalent noise and coherence tasks to 46 autistic children aged 6 to 14 years and 45 typically developing children matched in age and non-verbal IQ. The equivalent noise tasks consisted of two interleaved conditions: a high-noise condition in which children judged the average direction or orientation of elements whose range of direction or orientations was manipulated, and a no-noise condition in which children judged the direction or orientation of elements sharing the same direction or orientation. Equivalent noise modelling provided estimates of internal noise (the precision with which children can estimate the orientation/direction of one element) and global sampling (how many elements children are effectively using to judge the overall orientation/direction). Children also completed coherence tasks in which the proportion of signal elements sharing the same direction or orientation amidst otherwise random noise elements was manipulated. We assessed group differences using a combination of frequentist and Bayesian statistical approaches. Results Analysis of the data in this new sample alone did not provide sufficient evidence either in favour or against the hypothesis of increased integration in autism. However, when combining motion data from this and the original experiment, autistic children exhibited superior integration of direction information in the high-noise condition compared to typically developing children, with similar no-noise and coherence thresholds. Equivalent noise modelling of these data revealed increased sampling in autistic children for motion information but no conclusive evidence for atypical levels of internal noise. There was no evidence of differences between autistic and typically developing children in the orientation equivalent noise and coherence tasks. Conclusions Overall, autistic children effectively integrated more direction information than typically developing children. However, the groups overlapped considerably and there was substantial individual variability, so that the effect may be difficult to detect in small groups. There was no indication of atypical integration of orientation in the current study, although larger samples will be required in order to provide conclusive evidence. Implications These results help characterise the nature of sensory processing in autism, ","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/2396941517694626","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42682061","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-02-01DOI: 10.1177/2396941517692809
K. Hansson, Tina Ibertsson, Lena Asker-Árnason, Birgitta Sahlén
Background and aims Phonological processing skills measured by nonword repetition, are consistently found to be hampered in children with severe/profound hearing impairment and cochlear implants, compared to children with normal hearing. Many studies also find that grammar is affected. There are no studies exploring grammar in the Swedish population of children with cochlear implants. Documentation is also sparse regarding if and how language development in children with cochlear implants at the group level has changed over time with for example earlier implantation. The aim of the present study is to explore nonword repetition, grammatical production and sentence comprehension in an older generation of Swedish children with cochlear implants implanted during the 1990s and in a younger generation implanted after 2004. We also wanted to find out if and how nonword repetition is associated with grammatical production and comprehension in the two generations, taking the role of speech perception into consideration. Methods Thirteen adolescents with severe/profound hearing impairment and unilateral cochlear implants, aged 11;9 to 19;1 at the time of testing (age at implant 2;5 to 11;11) and 16 children with severe/profound hearing impairment and cochlear implants, aged 5;3 to 8;0 (age at implant 0;7 to 5;6, ten bilateral) participated. All participants used oral communication. They were tested with nonword repetition and sentence comprehension tasks. Language samples for grammatical analysis were collected during a referential communication task. Transcriptions were analysed with respect to mean length of utterance and grammatical accuracy. Results The two groups performed similar to each other and to reference data from much younger children with normal hearing and language development on nonword repetition. Both groups showed problems in grammatical accuracy. The majority of grammatical errors involved grammatical morphemes. All participants in the older group had significant problems with sentence comprehension, whereas variation was large in the younger group, some children performing at age level. In both groups, nonword repetition was associated with grammatical accuracy and in the younger group also with sentence comprehension. Conclusions Phonological processing skills are significantly hampered in children with cochlear implants, with consequences for language processing and development. Their grammatical problems involve the use of grammatical morphemes, similar to what is found for hearing children with specific language impairment. In spite of early implantation, the results from the younger group indicate that this is still a group at risk for problems with language learning. Implications Careful follow-up and support of language development in children with cochlear implants is crucial to identify children, whose problems are persistent. It is important for speech-language pathologists to take the interdependency of speech perception, p
{"title":"Phonological processing, grammar and sentence comprehension in older and younger generations of Swedish children with cochlear implants","authors":"K. Hansson, Tina Ibertsson, Lena Asker-Árnason, Birgitta Sahlén","doi":"10.1177/2396941517692809","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941517692809","url":null,"abstract":"Background and aims Phonological processing skills measured by nonword repetition, are consistently found to be hampered in children with severe/profound hearing impairment and cochlear implants, compared to children with normal hearing. Many studies also find that grammar is affected. There are no studies exploring grammar in the Swedish population of children with cochlear implants. Documentation is also sparse regarding if and how language development in children with cochlear implants at the group level has changed over time with for example earlier implantation. The aim of the present study is to explore nonword repetition, grammatical production and sentence comprehension in an older generation of Swedish children with cochlear implants implanted during the 1990s and in a younger generation implanted after 2004. We also wanted to find out if and how nonword repetition is associated with grammatical production and comprehension in the two generations, taking the role of speech perception into consideration. Methods Thirteen adolescents with severe/profound hearing impairment and unilateral cochlear implants, aged 11;9 to 19;1 at the time of testing (age at implant 2;5 to 11;11) and 16 children with severe/profound hearing impairment and cochlear implants, aged 5;3 to 8;0 (age at implant 0;7 to 5;6, ten bilateral) participated. All participants used oral communication. They were tested with nonword repetition and sentence comprehension tasks. Language samples for grammatical analysis were collected during a referential communication task. Transcriptions were analysed with respect to mean length of utterance and grammatical accuracy. Results The two groups performed similar to each other and to reference data from much younger children with normal hearing and language development on nonword repetition. Both groups showed problems in grammatical accuracy. The majority of grammatical errors involved grammatical morphemes. All participants in the older group had significant problems with sentence comprehension, whereas variation was large in the younger group, some children performing at age level. In both groups, nonword repetition was associated with grammatical accuracy and in the younger group also with sentence comprehension. Conclusions Phonological processing skills are significantly hampered in children with cochlear implants, with consequences for language processing and development. Their grammatical problems involve the use of grammatical morphemes, similar to what is found for hearing children with specific language impairment. In spite of early implantation, the results from the younger group indicate that this is still a group at risk for problems with language learning. Implications Careful follow-up and support of language development in children with cochlear implants is crucial to identify children, whose problems are persistent. It is important for speech-language pathologists to take the interdependency of speech perception, p","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/2396941517692809","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49503037","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-02-01DOI: 10.1177/2396941516688399
Stephanie Morano, Salvador Ruiz, Jiwon Hwang, Jennifer L. Wertalik, Jeremy Moeller, Muhammed A. Karal, Austin Mulloy
Background and aim Research has demonstrated that a variety of treatments can reduce or eliminate self-injurious behavior (SIB) in individuals with autism and/or intellectual disabilities but evidence suggests that not all treatments are equally effective. Methods We used multi-level meta-analysis to synthesize the results of 137 single-case design studies on SIB treatment for 245 individuals with autism and/or intellectual disabilities. Analyses compare the effects of various behavioral and medical treatments for SIB and assess associations between treatment effects and participant- and study-level variables. Results Findings suggest differential reinforcement, punishment, and treatment packages with reinforcement and punishment components resulted in the largest SIB reductions. Conclusions Results indicate that overall, treatment for SIB is highly effective and that participant and study characteristics do not moderate treatment effects. Implications Based on results and in line with current practice recommendations, we encourage use of reinforcement-based procedures in all cases of SIB. In the event that reinforcement-only treatments have failed or if SIB poses a serious, immediate threat to the health and well-being of an individual, our results suggest that overcorrection paired with reinforcement may be the most effective as well as less invasive alternative.
{"title":"Meta-analysis of single-case treatment effects on self-injurious behavior for individuals with autism and intellectual disabilities","authors":"Stephanie Morano, Salvador Ruiz, Jiwon Hwang, Jennifer L. Wertalik, Jeremy Moeller, Muhammed A. Karal, Austin Mulloy","doi":"10.1177/2396941516688399","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941516688399","url":null,"abstract":"Background and aim Research has demonstrated that a variety of treatments can reduce or eliminate self-injurious behavior (SIB) in individuals with autism and/or intellectual disabilities but evidence suggests that not all treatments are equally effective. Methods We used multi-level meta-analysis to synthesize the results of 137 single-case design studies on SIB treatment for 245 individuals with autism and/or intellectual disabilities. Analyses compare the effects of various behavioral and medical treatments for SIB and assess associations between treatment effects and participant- and study-level variables. Results Findings suggest differential reinforcement, punishment, and treatment packages with reinforcement and punishment components resulted in the largest SIB reductions. Conclusions Results indicate that overall, treatment for SIB is highly effective and that participant and study characteristics do not moderate treatment effects. Implications Based on results and in line with current practice recommendations, we encourage use of reinforcement-based procedures in all cases of SIB. In the event that reinforcement-only treatments have failed or if SIB poses a serious, immediate threat to the health and well-being of an individual, our results suggest that overcorrection paired with reinforcement may be the most effective as well as less invasive alternative.","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/2396941516688399","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48212528","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-01-01DOI: 10.1177/2396941516683183
A. King, Kathryn W. Brady, G. Voreis
Background and aims This qualitative study was conducted to obtain information regarding education professionals’ (i.e., classroom teachers’ and speech-language pathologists’) perspectives about tablet technology use in classrooms of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (CWASD). Methods Seventeen education professionals from a special day school for CWASD participated in one of four focus groups that provided information and insight regarding the context in which tablets are being used, challenges in implementing tablets, and perspectives on how tablets can be used most effectively. Results Four interrelated themes emerged from the data including the participants’ perspectives related to: (a) the distinct uses of tablets; (b) challenges and challenging behavior associated with tablet use; (c) causal factors of the challenges; and (d) the value of tablets, and the continued desire and dedication to using the tablets; Conclusions and implications The results from this study suggest that education professionals have unique and insightful opinions related to tablets. There appears to be gaps between the current research base on tablet use in CWASD and “real world” practice, suggesting that further research is needed in the implementation of tablets in classrooms of CWASD.
{"title":"“It’s a blessing and a curse”: Perspectives on tablet use in children with autism spectrum disorder","authors":"A. King, Kathryn W. Brady, G. Voreis","doi":"10.1177/2396941516683183","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941516683183","url":null,"abstract":"Background and aims This qualitative study was conducted to obtain information regarding education professionals’ (i.e., classroom teachers’ and speech-language pathologists’) perspectives about tablet technology use in classrooms of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (CWASD). Methods Seventeen education professionals from a special day school for CWASD participated in one of four focus groups that provided information and insight regarding the context in which tablets are being used, challenges in implementing tablets, and perspectives on how tablets can be used most effectively. Results Four interrelated themes emerged from the data including the participants’ perspectives related to: (a) the distinct uses of tablets; (b) challenges and challenging behavior associated with tablet use; (c) causal factors of the challenges; and (d) the value of tablets, and the continued desire and dedication to using the tablets; Conclusions and implications The results from this study suggest that education professionals have unique and insightful opinions related to tablets. There appears to be gaps between the current research base on tablet use in CWASD and “real world” practice, suggesting that further research is needed in the implementation of tablets in classrooms of CWASD.","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/2396941516683183","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48451277","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-01-01DOI: 10.1177/2396941516680369
L. Archibald
Background and aims Increasingly, speech language pathologists are engaging in collaborative classroom services with teachers and other educators to support children with developmental language disorder and other communication impairments. Recent systematic reviews have provided a summary of only a small fraction of the available evidence and recommended the use of reason-based practice in the absence of a sufficient empirically driven evidence base. The purpose of this paper was to provide a broad (but critical) review of the existing evidence. Main contribution Papers were gathered through review of reference lists in the recent systematic reviews and other published works, as well as general internet searches. A total of 49 papers were identified either reporting empirical evidence pertaining to SLP-educator collaborative classroom activities, empirical evidence pertaining to consultative services, classroom instruction, or small group intervention in the classroom, or providing information, discussion, surveys, or reviews related to the topic. Evidence pertaining to vocabulary, oral language, phonological awareness, curriculum-based language, and written language were summarized together with qualifications based on elements of the research design. Conclusion and implications Although much of the evidence must be interpreted with considerable caution, the present review is informative for clinicians looking to adopt a reason-based approach to practice.
{"title":"SLP-educator classroom collaboration: A review to inform reason-based practice","authors":"L. Archibald","doi":"10.1177/2396941516680369","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941516680369","url":null,"abstract":"Background and aims Increasingly, speech language pathologists are engaging in collaborative classroom services with teachers and other educators to support children with developmental language disorder and other communication impairments. Recent systematic reviews have provided a summary of only a small fraction of the available evidence and recommended the use of reason-based practice in the absence of a sufficient empirically driven evidence base. The purpose of this paper was to provide a broad (but critical) review of the existing evidence. Main contribution Papers were gathered through review of reference lists in the recent systematic reviews and other published works, as well as general internet searches. A total of 49 papers were identified either reporting empirical evidence pertaining to SLP-educator collaborative classroom activities, empirical evidence pertaining to consultative services, classroom instruction, or small group intervention in the classroom, or providing information, discussion, surveys, or reviews related to the topic. Evidence pertaining to vocabulary, oral language, phonological awareness, curriculum-based language, and written language were summarized together with qualifications based on elements of the research design. Conclusion and implications Although much of the evidence must be interpreted with considerable caution, the present review is informative for clinicians looking to adopt a reason-based approach to practice.","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/2396941516680369","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45401857","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-01-01DOI: 10.1177/2396941516684834
C. Makin, V. Hill, E. Pellicano
Background and aims Children diagnosed with an autism spectrum condition are known anecdotally to be especially vulnerable during the transition to secondary school. Yet, very little is known about the child-, school- and system-level factors that can potentially make changing schools particularly difficult for these children. Here, we report on a mixed-method study, which examined the factors that influence a successful school transition for autistic children in one local education authority in England. Methods Fifteen children were seen twice in the space of four months – once during the final term of their mainstream primary school and again during the first term of secondary school. Parents and teachers were also interviewed at both time points. Results Overall, our participants reported negative experiences of their transition to secondary school – regardless of the type of secondary provision (mainstream or specialist) to which they transferred. None of the child-level factors measured during the pre-transition phase, including verbal ability, autistic symptomatology, sensory responsiveness and anxiety, predicted children’s transition success four months later. Rather, transition success appeared to be predominantly related to several school- and system-level factors, including tensions over school choice, delays in placement decisions, lack of primary preparation and communication between schools. Identity-related issues were also a key concern for many children, which appeared to have a particularly negative influence on adjustment to their new school. Conclusions We identified predominantly negative experiences of primary-to-secondary transition for the autistic children sampled here, which appeared to be accounted for largely by school- and system-level factors. Implications Applying interventions that are designed to ease the transition to secondary school by modifying the school environment before, during and after transition to improve the fit between the autistic child and their educational environment should go some way in tackling school-related barriers to a successful transition for these children. System-level changes in the way that local authorities manage the transition process may also improve children and families’ experiences.
{"title":"The primary-to-secondary school transition for children on the autism spectrum: A multi-informant mixed-methods study","authors":"C. Makin, V. Hill, E. Pellicano","doi":"10.1177/2396941516684834","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941516684834","url":null,"abstract":"Background and aims Children diagnosed with an autism spectrum condition are known anecdotally to be especially vulnerable during the transition to secondary school. Yet, very little is known about the child-, school- and system-level factors that can potentially make changing schools particularly difficult for these children. Here, we report on a mixed-method study, which examined the factors that influence a successful school transition for autistic children in one local education authority in England. Methods Fifteen children were seen twice in the space of four months – once during the final term of their mainstream primary school and again during the first term of secondary school. Parents and teachers were also interviewed at both time points. Results Overall, our participants reported negative experiences of their transition to secondary school – regardless of the type of secondary provision (mainstream or specialist) to which they transferred. None of the child-level factors measured during the pre-transition phase, including verbal ability, autistic symptomatology, sensory responsiveness and anxiety, predicted children’s transition success four months later. Rather, transition success appeared to be predominantly related to several school- and system-level factors, including tensions over school choice, delays in placement decisions, lack of primary preparation and communication between schools. Identity-related issues were also a key concern for many children, which appeared to have a particularly negative influence on adjustment to their new school. Conclusions We identified predominantly negative experiences of primary-to-secondary transition for the autistic children sampled here, which appeared to be accounted for largely by school- and system-level factors. Implications Applying interventions that are designed to ease the transition to secondary school by modifying the school environment before, during and after transition to improve the fit between the autistic child and their educational environment should go some way in tackling school-related barriers to a successful transition for these children. System-level changes in the way that local authorities manage the transition process may also improve children and families’ experiences.","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/2396941516684834","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43801154","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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