Pub Date : 2021-07-05DOI: 10.1108/AIA-01-2021-0002
M. Heyman, M. Galligan, Giselle Salinas, Elizabeth Baker, J. Blacher, K. Stavropoulos
Purpose Professionals working with community populations are often presented with complicated cases where it is difficult to determine which diagnosis or diagnoses are appropriate. Differentiating among neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and intellectual disability can be a complex process, especially, as these disorders have some overlapping symptoms and often co-occur in young children. This series of case studies aims to present commonly overlapping symptoms in children who present to clinics with developmental concerns. Design/methodology/approach This paper presents three case studies that were completed at a free community ASD screening clinic in Southern California. Findings The case studies have common presenting behaviors and symptoms (e.g. social communication difficulties) that often co-occur across diagnoses; explanations for the final diagnoses are given in each case. Research limitations/implications Conclusions from these three cases cannot generalize to all children being seen in clinics for neurodevelopmental concerns. Practical implications This series of case studies highlights commonly overlapping symptoms in children who present for differential diagnosis with social and/or behavioral concerns. Implications for educational placement and intervention are discussed. Social implications These cases highlight the challenges involved in the differential and dual diagnostic process for young children with developmental concerns. Diagnostic considerations can affect later educational placement and opportunities for socialization. Originality/value This series of case studies provide practical information for clinicians about how to effectively differentiate between commonly occurring neurodevelopmental disorders, particularly given recent changes to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, 5th edition (DSM-5).
{"title":"Differential diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disability and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)","authors":"M. Heyman, M. Galligan, Giselle Salinas, Elizabeth Baker, J. Blacher, K. Stavropoulos","doi":"10.1108/AIA-01-2021-0002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/AIA-01-2021-0002","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Purpose\u0000Professionals working with community populations are often presented with complicated cases where it is difficult to determine which diagnosis or diagnoses are appropriate. Differentiating among neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and intellectual disability can be a complex process, especially, as these disorders have some overlapping symptoms and often co-occur in young children. This series of case studies aims to present commonly overlapping symptoms in children who present to clinics with developmental concerns.\u0000\u0000\u0000Design/methodology/approach\u0000This paper presents three case studies that were completed at a free community ASD screening clinic in Southern California.\u0000\u0000\u0000Findings\u0000The case studies have common presenting behaviors and symptoms (e.g. social communication difficulties) that often co-occur across diagnoses; explanations for the final diagnoses are given in each case.\u0000\u0000\u0000Research limitations/implications\u0000Conclusions from these three cases cannot generalize to all children being seen in clinics for neurodevelopmental concerns.\u0000\u0000\u0000Practical implications\u0000This series of case studies highlights commonly overlapping symptoms in children who present for differential diagnosis with social and/or behavioral concerns. Implications for educational placement and intervention are discussed.\u0000\u0000\u0000Social implications\u0000These cases highlight the challenges involved in the differential and dual diagnostic process for young children with developmental concerns. Diagnostic considerations can affect later educational placement and opportunities for socialization.\u0000\u0000\u0000Originality/value\u0000This series of case studies provide practical information for clinicians about how to effectively differentiate between commonly occurring neurodevelopmental disorders, particularly given recent changes to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, 5th edition (DSM-5).\u0000","PeriodicalId":43640,"journal":{"name":"Advances in Autism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45378874","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 : 2021-06-30DOI: 10.1108/aia-12-2020-0073
Ghorban Hemati Alamdarloo, F. Majidi
Purpose Most parents experience stress when their children are diagnosed with some kind of disability. This paper aims to compare the level of stress among mothers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders. Design/methodology/approach Research sample consisted of 150 mothers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders (50 mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder, 50 mothers of children with intellectual disability and 50 mothers of children with specific learning disorder selected by convenience sampling). The Stress Response Inventory was used for measuring stress. One-way analysis of variance, multivariate analysis of variance and Scheffe post hoc tests were used for data analysis. Findings The results showed that the stress of mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder was significantly higher than to the other groups of mothers. It was also observed that the stress of mothers of children with intellectual disability was significantly higher than the mothers of children with the specific learning disorder. Originality/value Therefore, designing and implementing preventive and interventional programs to decrease the stress of mothers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders, especially mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder is necessary.
{"title":"Stress in mothers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders","authors":"Ghorban Hemati Alamdarloo, F. Majidi","doi":"10.1108/aia-12-2020-0073","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/aia-12-2020-0073","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Purpose\u0000Most parents experience stress when their children are diagnosed with some kind of disability. This paper aims to compare the level of stress among mothers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders.\u0000\u0000\u0000Design/methodology/approach\u0000Research sample consisted of 150 mothers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders (50 mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder, 50 mothers of children with intellectual disability and 50 mothers of children with specific learning disorder selected by convenience sampling). The Stress Response Inventory was used for measuring stress. One-way analysis of variance, multivariate analysis of variance and Scheffe post hoc tests were used for data analysis.\u0000\u0000\u0000Findings\u0000The results showed that the stress of mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder was significantly higher than to the other groups of mothers. It was also observed that the stress of mothers of children with intellectual disability was significantly higher than the mothers of children with the specific learning disorder.\u0000\u0000\u0000Originality/value\u0000Therefore, designing and implementing preventive and interventional programs to decrease the stress of mothers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders, especially mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder is necessary.\u0000","PeriodicalId":43640,"journal":{"name":"Advances in Autism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48697669","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 : 2021-06-28DOI: 10.1108/aia-10-2020-0058
Nicolle Robertson, A. Qureshi, R. Monk
Purpose This study aims to represent a first attempt to examine in a non-clinical population the interplay between social engagement, executive function (EF) and theory of mind (ToM) within a social motivation theory framework. Design/methodology/approach A total of 170 participants (135 female; mean age = 19.01 and standard deviation = 1.27) completed measures of ToM (Faux Pas task), autistic traits (Autism Spectrum Quotient), social engagement (reward dependence subscale of the Temperament and Character Inventory), sociability and EF (both subscales of the Adult Temperament Questionnaire). Findings Path analyses found that EF, sociability and social engagement were negatively associated with autistic traits both directly and indirectly. Results indicate that EF may impact sociability and social engagement and their interaction may relate to the degree of autistic traits shown in a typical sample. However, ToM (as measured by the Faux Pas test) was not related to any of the other variables. Originality/value Sociability, social engagement and effortful control deficits may be linked to higher levels of autistic traits. These factors appear to form a hierarchy of factors underpinning autism spectrum disorder, with EF contributing to all aspects, followed by sociability and social engagement at a higher level. Future research examining in clinical populations the utility of a more integrated model of social motivation that incorporates EF appears warranted.
{"title":"The relationship between autistic characteristics, social engagement and executive function in a typical sample","authors":"Nicolle Robertson, A. Qureshi, R. Monk","doi":"10.1108/aia-10-2020-0058","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/aia-10-2020-0058","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Purpose\u0000This study aims to represent a first attempt to examine in a non-clinical population the interplay between social engagement, executive function (EF) and theory of mind (ToM) within a social motivation theory framework.\u0000\u0000\u0000Design/methodology/approach\u0000A total of 170 participants (135 female; mean age = 19.01 and standard deviation = 1.27) completed measures of ToM (Faux Pas task), autistic traits (Autism Spectrum Quotient), social engagement (reward dependence subscale of the Temperament and Character Inventory), sociability and EF (both subscales of the Adult Temperament Questionnaire).\u0000\u0000\u0000Findings\u0000Path analyses found that EF, sociability and social engagement were negatively associated with autistic traits both directly and indirectly. Results indicate that EF may impact sociability and social engagement and their interaction may relate to the degree of autistic traits shown in a typical sample. However, ToM (as measured by the Faux Pas test) was not related to any of the other variables.\u0000\u0000\u0000Originality/value\u0000Sociability, social engagement and effortful control deficits may be linked to higher levels of autistic traits. These factors appear to form a hierarchy of factors underpinning autism spectrum disorder, with EF contributing to all aspects, followed by sociability and social engagement at a higher level. Future research examining in clinical populations the utility of a more integrated model of social motivation that incorporates EF appears warranted.\u0000","PeriodicalId":43640,"journal":{"name":"Advances in Autism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-06-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46950878","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 : 2021-06-25DOI: 10.1108/aia-09-2020-0052
Mo Chen, Shelley Kreibich, Jolene K Hyppa-Martin
Purpose Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) or other developmental disabilities are often reported to have challenges in well generalizing the newly learned communicative skills such as requesting help. Not requesting help when it is needed can hinder engagement and learning, whereas requesting help could also be socially inappropriate. This paper aims to offer a demonstration of applying general case instruction to teach a young child diagnosed with ASD to request help only when needed while concurrently increasing the child’s independence in task completion. Design/methodology/approach The demonstration adopted within-participant AB designs for one 5-year-old boy with ASD, with data collected across three tasks targeted for intervention and the other three tasks targeted for generalization probes throughout both the baseline and intervention phases. Dependent measures consisted of independent help request and independent task completion. Visual analysis was used to describe the results. Findings Results showed that the child with ASD learned to ask for help on difficult educational activities, while concurrently increasing his independence on these tasks; generalized the skill of requesting help by asking for help when he encountered other challenging novel tasks; and independently completed easy educational activities without requesting help. Originality/value The findings from this study may add to the limited literature that explored the generalization performance across tasks/activities in young learners with ASD, while demonstrating the feasibility of designing and applying general case instruction framework to enhance generalization performance for one individual learner.
{"title":"Teaching a child with autism to request help only when needed","authors":"Mo Chen, Shelley Kreibich, Jolene K Hyppa-Martin","doi":"10.1108/aia-09-2020-0052","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/aia-09-2020-0052","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Purpose\u0000Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) or other developmental disabilities are often reported to have challenges in well generalizing the newly learned communicative skills such as requesting help. Not requesting help when it is needed can hinder engagement and learning, whereas requesting help could also be socially inappropriate. This paper aims to offer a demonstration of applying general case instruction to teach a young child diagnosed with ASD to request help only when needed while concurrently increasing the child’s independence in task completion.\u0000\u0000\u0000Design/methodology/approach\u0000The demonstration adopted within-participant AB designs for one 5-year-old boy with ASD, with data collected across three tasks targeted for intervention and the other three tasks targeted for generalization probes throughout both the baseline and intervention phases. Dependent measures consisted of independent help request and independent task completion. Visual analysis was used to describe the results.\u0000\u0000\u0000Findings\u0000Results showed that the child with ASD learned to ask for help on difficult educational activities, while concurrently increasing his independence on these tasks; generalized the skill of requesting help by asking for help when he encountered other challenging novel tasks; and independently completed easy educational activities without requesting help.\u0000\u0000\u0000Originality/value\u0000The findings from this study may add to the limited literature that explored the generalization performance across tasks/activities in young learners with ASD, while demonstrating the feasibility of designing and applying general case instruction framework to enhance generalization performance for one individual learner.\u0000","PeriodicalId":43640,"journal":{"name":"Advances in Autism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-06-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49539150","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 : 2021-06-21DOI: 10.1108/aia-08-2020-0047
F. Amini, Kok Wah Yee, S. Soh, Abdulateef Alhadeethi, R. Amini, Edmond Siah Chye Ng
Purpose Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of complex neurodevelopmental disorders with uncertain etiology. Evidence shows that genetic testing can explain about 20% of cases. This study aims to assess the level of awareness and perception of medical genetic services among Malaysian parents with ASD children. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional survey using an interviewer-administered questionnaire was done among 111 parents of children with ASD from August 2017 to September 2019 in two clinics in Malaysia. Findings A majority of children with ASD (80.20%) were male and diagnosed at the age of 3–4 years old (47.80%). When the autistic child was born, most mothers and fathers were aged 26–30 (40.50%) and 31–35 years old (42.30%), respectively. Another child with ASD in nuclear and extended families was reported for 11.70% and 13.50%, respectively. Only 24.30% have seen a professional genetic consultant, and 19.8% have done genetic testing for affected children. The mean score of awareness of genetic services for ASD was 2.48 ± 3.30. Having medical insurance and another child with ASD in the nuclear family was significantly associated with a higher level of awareness (p = 0.01 and p < 0.001, respectively). Most of the participants have a positive perception of these services. Originality/value Regardless of demographic factors, participants have poor awareness of genetic services for ASD, likely because the primary physician did not recommend it upon diagnosis. Increasing health-care providers’ knowledge about the current potential of genetic testing for ASD and educational campaigns for the public are critical components of using available genetic tests to improve ASD management.
{"title":"Awareness and perception of medical genetic services among Malaysian parents of autism spectrum disorders children: the lessons to be learned","authors":"F. Amini, Kok Wah Yee, S. Soh, Abdulateef Alhadeethi, R. Amini, Edmond Siah Chye Ng","doi":"10.1108/aia-08-2020-0047","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/aia-08-2020-0047","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Purpose\u0000Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of complex neurodevelopmental disorders with uncertain etiology. Evidence shows that genetic testing can explain about 20% of cases. This study aims to assess the level of awareness and perception of medical genetic services among Malaysian parents with ASD children.\u0000\u0000\u0000Design/methodology/approach\u0000A cross-sectional survey using an interviewer-administered questionnaire was done among 111 parents of children with ASD from August 2017 to September 2019 in two clinics in Malaysia.\u0000\u0000\u0000Findings\u0000A majority of children with ASD (80.20%) were male and diagnosed at the age of 3–4 years old (47.80%). When the autistic child was born, most mothers and fathers were aged 26–30 (40.50%) and 31–35 years old (42.30%), respectively. Another child with ASD in nuclear and extended families was reported for 11.70% and 13.50%, respectively. Only 24.30% have seen a professional genetic consultant, and 19.8% have done genetic testing for affected children. The mean score of awareness of genetic services for ASD was 2.48 ± 3.30. Having medical insurance and another child with ASD in the nuclear family was significantly associated with a higher level of awareness (p = 0.01 and p < 0.001, respectively). Most of the participants have a positive perception of these services.\u0000\u0000\u0000Originality/value\u0000Regardless of demographic factors, participants have poor awareness of genetic services for ASD, likely because the primary physician did not recommend it upon diagnosis. Increasing health-care providers’ knowledge about the current potential of genetic testing for ASD and educational campaigns for the public are critical components of using available genetic tests to improve ASD management.\u0000","PeriodicalId":43640,"journal":{"name":"Advances in Autism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-06-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43682310","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 : 2021-06-21DOI: 10.1108/aia-01-2021-0003
S. Bashirian, A. Soltanian, Mahdieh Seyedi, S. Khazaei, E. Jenabi, K. Razjouyan, Hadi Zarafshan, M. Barati, M. Afshari
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to assess the validity of the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) in an Iranian population to determine its efficacy in identifying children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who parents have Persian-speaking parents. Design/methodology/approach A case–control study was performed in March until July 2020 in Hamadan city, Iran. The case group was children were examined by the clinicians used a coding scheme based on the DSM-IV criteria for ASD. The control group was all children in the family, including healthy siblings, were asked to participate in the study. The reliability, content and face validity were performed to assess the psychometric properties of the tool. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed to evaluate the four-dimensional structure of the tool (Scores A, B, C and D). Statistical analysis was performed using AMOS for SPSS 21, and the statistical significant level was less than 0.05. Findings The quantitative content validity analysis revealed that the mean of content validity ratio (CVR) and content validity index (CVI) for all domains was 0.94 and 0.91, respectively. For CFA, four domains A, B, C and D were used and demonstrated a good fit (CFI = 0.92 and RMSEA = 0.06). The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) in domains A, B (verbal), C and D were 100%. For domain B (non-verbal), the sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV were 86.7%, 100%, 100% and 88.2%, respectively. Research limitations/implications This study showed that ADI-R has sufficient ability to discriminate between children with ASD and those with no psychiatric diagnosis, and it is a reliable tool in Iran. The sensitivity and specificity for correctly diagnosing ASD was high, regardless of the age and cognitive level of the examiner. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper on psychometric properties of ADI-R in children with ASD.
{"title":"The psychometric properties of the Iranian version of Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) in children with autism spectrum disorder","authors":"S. Bashirian, A. Soltanian, Mahdieh Seyedi, S. Khazaei, E. Jenabi, K. Razjouyan, Hadi Zarafshan, M. Barati, M. Afshari","doi":"10.1108/aia-01-2021-0003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/aia-01-2021-0003","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Purpose\u0000The purpose of this paper is to assess the validity of the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) in an Iranian population to determine its efficacy in identifying children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who parents have Persian-speaking parents.\u0000\u0000\u0000Design/methodology/approach\u0000A case–control study was performed in March until July 2020 in Hamadan city, Iran. The case group was children were examined by the clinicians used a coding scheme based on the DSM-IV criteria for ASD. The control group was all children in the family, including healthy siblings, were asked to participate in the study. The reliability, content and face validity were performed to assess the psychometric properties of the tool. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed to evaluate the four-dimensional structure of the tool (Scores A, B, C and D). Statistical analysis was performed using AMOS for SPSS 21, and the statistical significant level was less than 0.05.\u0000\u0000\u0000Findings\u0000The quantitative content validity analysis revealed that the mean of content validity ratio (CVR) and content validity index (CVI) for all domains was 0.94 and 0.91, respectively. For CFA, four domains A, B, C and D were used and demonstrated a good fit (CFI = 0.92 and RMSEA = 0.06). The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) in domains A, B (verbal), C and D were 100%. For domain B (non-verbal), the sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV were 86.7%, 100%, 100% and 88.2%, respectively.\u0000\u0000\u0000Research limitations/implications\u0000This study showed that ADI-R has sufficient ability to discriminate between children with ASD and those with no psychiatric diagnosis, and it is a reliable tool in Iran. The sensitivity and specificity for correctly diagnosing ASD was high, regardless of the age and cognitive level of the examiner.\u0000\u0000\u0000Originality/value\u0000To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper on psychometric properties of ADI-R in children with ASD.\u0000","PeriodicalId":43640,"journal":{"name":"Advances in Autism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-06-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41833512","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 : 2021-06-01DOI: 10.1108/AIA-08-2020-0051
Ashleigh Hillier, Nataliya Poto, David Schena, Abigail Buckingham, A. Frye
Purpose The lack of services for adults on the autism spectrum is of growing concern. Given the huge variation in how autism impacts people, individualized approaches might be particularly effective. The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of a community-based life-skills coaching program for adults with autism “LifeMAP.” Design/methodology/approach LifeMAP is structured around individualized meetings between a client and their coach where they identify, prioritize and make progress toward self-selected goals. LifeMAP was established in 2008 and has since served around 2,600 clients. This paper provides an outline of the LifeMAP program, how sessions with clients are structured, goals that adults with autism prioritize and preliminary data on progress toward goal attainment. Findings Findings indicated that the LifeMAP program model was effective in supporting progress toward goals, increasing confidence toward goals and reducing anxiety. Originality/value Given the scope of the LifeMAP program, this overview is unique in providing pertinent information to others looking for effective and authentic strategies to support autistic adults and those transitioning from high school. This study provides a realistic perspective on how programs are applied in community-based settings, outside a structured, formal lab setting. It is concluded that individualized intervention approaches might be key to successful outcomes for adults with autism.
{"title":"An individualized life-skills coaching program for adults with autism","authors":"Ashleigh Hillier, Nataliya Poto, David Schena, Abigail Buckingham, A. Frye","doi":"10.1108/AIA-08-2020-0051","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/AIA-08-2020-0051","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Purpose\u0000The lack of services for adults on the autism spectrum is of growing concern. Given the huge variation in how autism impacts people, individualized approaches might be particularly effective. The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of a community-based life-skills coaching program for adults with autism “LifeMAP.”\u0000\u0000\u0000Design/methodology/approach\u0000LifeMAP is structured around individualized meetings between a client and their coach where they identify, prioritize and make progress toward self-selected goals. LifeMAP was established in 2008 and has since served around 2,600 clients. This paper provides an outline of the LifeMAP program, how sessions with clients are structured, goals that adults with autism prioritize and preliminary data on progress toward goal attainment.\u0000\u0000\u0000Findings\u0000Findings indicated that the LifeMAP program model was effective in supporting progress toward goals, increasing confidence toward goals and reducing anxiety.\u0000\u0000\u0000Originality/value\u0000Given the scope of the LifeMAP program, this overview is unique in providing pertinent information to others looking for effective and authentic strategies to support autistic adults and those transitioning from high school. This study provides a realistic perspective on how programs are applied in community-based settings, outside a structured, formal lab setting. It is concluded that individualized intervention approaches might be key to successful outcomes for adults with autism.\u0000","PeriodicalId":43640,"journal":{"name":"Advances in Autism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42497033","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 : 2021-01-01DOI: 10.1108/AIA-11-2020-0066
Ivana Vasilevska Petrovska, A. Giannakopoulou, Vassiliki Tsecoura, A. Winstanley, R. Miletto, Georgeta Georgeta Constanta Rosca, Biserka Ivanova, Vasiliki Kaisa, Vladimir Trajkovski
Purpose Amid the expanding demand on the autism service delivery system, little knowledge is accumulated regarding access and availability of support and services in the region of Southern and South-Eastern Europe – critical for improvement of individual outcomes, as well as family quality of life. The purpose of this paper is to explore how service delivery systems are responding to the specific needs of autistic individuals with autism, as perceived by parents. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative exploratory descriptive method was used. Thematic analysis was used as a pragmatic method to report on the experiences of parents (92% mothers, n = 55) of children, youth and young autistic adults (76% male) across six South and South-Eastern European counties that participated in a survey involving a combination of qualitative and quantitative data collection. Findings Thematic analysis revealed three broad themes: challenging pathways to service utilization, insufficient service options and providers’ competences and lack of continuous and meaningful support across life span. Originality/value The findings from this study add to the small body of literature specific to South and South-Eastern Europe, by exposing problems related to meeting the needs of autistic children and youth and potential ways to strengthen services, as perceived by parents. The findings have potential policy ramifications for the region in which the research was conducted.
{"title":"Parental perspectives on support needs and availability of autism services in South and South-Eastern Europe","authors":"Ivana Vasilevska Petrovska, A. Giannakopoulou, Vassiliki Tsecoura, A. Winstanley, R. Miletto, Georgeta Georgeta Constanta Rosca, Biserka Ivanova, Vasiliki Kaisa, Vladimir Trajkovski","doi":"10.1108/AIA-11-2020-0066","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/AIA-11-2020-0066","url":null,"abstract":"Purpose Amid the expanding demand on the autism service delivery system, little knowledge is accumulated regarding access and availability of support and services in the region of Southern and South-Eastern Europe – critical for improvement of individual outcomes, as well as family quality of life. The purpose of this paper is to explore how service delivery systems are responding to the specific needs of autistic individuals with autism, as perceived by parents. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative exploratory descriptive method was used. Thematic analysis was used as a pragmatic method to report on the experiences of parents (92% mothers, n = 55) of children, youth and young autistic adults (76% male) across six South and South-Eastern European counties that participated in a survey involving a combination of qualitative and quantitative data collection. Findings Thematic analysis revealed three broad themes: challenging pathways to service utilization, insufficient service options and providers’ competences and lack of continuous and meaningful support across life span. Originality/value The findings from this study add to the small body of literature specific to South and South-Eastern Europe, by exposing problems related to meeting the needs of autistic children and youth and potential ways to strengthen services, as perceived by parents. The findings have potential policy ramifications for the region in which the research was conducted.","PeriodicalId":43640,"journal":{"name":"Advances in Autism","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"62019382","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}
{"title":"Editorial","authors":"E. Chaplin, J. McCarthy, S. Hardy","doi":"10.1108/aia-10-2020-058","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/aia-10-2020-058","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":43640,"journal":{"name":"Advances in Autism","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2020-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42475584","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 : 2020-10-13DOI: 10.1108/aia-01-2020-0003
H. Pesonen, Tiina Itkonen, M. Saha, A. Nordahl-Hansen
Purpose Media play a significant role in the process of raising public awareness about autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Despite an increase in ASD media coverage, there is scarcity of research that examines how the actual frame is constructed and how the news stories are narrated. This study aims to examine the extent to which Finnish print media papers extend medical and societal narration of ASD to other issue domains and the extent to which newspaper stories use a positive, negative or neutral narrative. Design/methodology/approach The authors analyzed 210 full newspaper reports from the largest daily appearing newspaper by circulation in Finland from 1990 to 2016. The authors used the newspaper’s electronic database to conduct a systematic papers search. The authors then used coding scheme about news story framing, which was followed by a detailed content analysis of the papers. Findings Approximately two-thirds of the papers consisted of a straightforward informational or clinical lens to educate the public (n = 110). This is in line with international studies. However, the authors’ analysis revealed four additional themes of medical and societal ASD reporting. Social implications The study increases understanding about how the media can shape the public perception of ASD, which in turn might influence how autistic individuals are accepted in the society, as well as how they feel that they belong. Originality/value While ASD itself is at the center of neutral news reporting, this study’s results imply how to construct ASD from new paradigms. Linking ASD to a culture, and thus extending it to the more commonly accepted notion of deafness as a culture, might shape the public’s perceptions about ASD.
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