Autism Spectrum Disorder

Autism Spectrum Disorder

• One of the most prevalent medical condition that causes language disorder or communication disorder

• Majority of pediatric clients have ASD

  • Even though there’s too many children with ASD and there are signs and symptoms that characterize or differentiate them from other children with different medical conditions, the manifestations of the signs and symptoms are sometimes different

  • Thus, it is very important to understand the language profile or characteristics of these children so we can identify them when we see them and we can give them the most appropriate management based on the problem areas that we identify 

Definition of Autism Spectrum Disorder

• Umbrella term that encompasses a range of disorders that are characterized by core impairments in social communication and a restricted repertoire of interests and behavior

Signs and Symptoms

1. Persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts

2. Restricted, repetitive patterns of behaviors, interests, or activities

Persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts

• Deficits in social-emotional reciprocity

  • A person/child’s ability to engage in social interactions between two or more people 

  • It is very typical for humans to interact with one another and this skill starts to develop in the early years of life so as humans we learn most of the social rules for various situations or contexts through experiential learning 

  • We learn through our experiences that the social rules vary depending on the context, place, or situation 

    • ie. when we see a friend or a relative, we have to greet them / if someone greets you, the polite response would be to smile or respond to that polite greeting 

    • ie. sometimes we also have to make small talks with each other; even though you’re not comfortable with it or you don’t want to, if the situation necessitates that you have a small talk with an individual, you do it because you know that is what is needed in that context or situation 

    • We know what topic to talk about with a specific person, what topic not to talk about with certain individuals because you know that the person might get mad or would elicit negative emotions from that individual

  • Most children with ASD have problems with this which may manifest as an abnormal social approach 

    • ie. when the kid would like to say “hi” to you but they would hit/slap you or do something not appropriate given the context 

    • Would also manifest as:

      • limited ability to sustain an interaction

      • No back-and-forth social interaction

      • Reduced share interests

      • Lack of emotion or affect

      • Failure to initiate or respond to social interactions