Psychology Commons^™

Evaluating The Role Of Social Approach Behaviors In Children With Autism, Jessica M. Weber

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Children diagnosed with autism show marked impairments in social and communicative behaviors. According to social motivation and social orienting models of autism, decreased social interest leads to less social input and fewer social learning opportunities (Chevallier et al., 2012; Mundy & Neal, 2001). These models suggest that the ability to initiate and participate in social interactions are important factors in language development. Research in this area has focused on the role of joint attention in language development however; the current study takes a broad view of social interest and posits that not only joint attention, but all socially mediated behaviors …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Discrete Trial Procedures For Teaching Receptive Discrimination To Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Desiree J. Sepulveda

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research has found that children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) show significant deficits in receptive language skills (Wiesmer, Lord, & Esler, 2010). One of the primary goals of applied behavior analytic intervention is to improve the communication skills of children with autism by teaching receptive discriminations. Both receptive discriminations and receptive language entail matching spoken words with corresponding objects, symbols (e.g., pictures or words), actions, people, and so on (Green, 2001). In order to develop receptive language skills, children with autism often undergo discrimination training within the context of discrete trial training. This training entails teaching the learner how to …

The Role Of Anger Rumination And Autism Spectrum Disorder– Linked Perseveration In The Experience Of Aggression In The General Population, Cara E. Pugliese, Matthew S. Fritz, Susan W. White

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

This study (a) examined the role of anger rumination as a mediator of the relation between social anxiety and the experience of anger, hostility, and aggression, in the general population, and (b) evaluated the degree to which the presence of autism spectrum disorder characteristics moderates the indirect influence of anger rumination. We then explored whether social cognition and perseveration characteristic of autism spectrum disorder uniquely accounted for the predicted moderation. In this survey study of young adults (n = 948), anger rumination mediated the relation between social anxiety and hostility, as well as verbal and physical aggression, as predicted. Greater …

“The Autism Adventures Of Watson & Holmes”: Puppet Theatre To Improve Elementary Students’ Knowledge Of And Attitudes Toward Autism Spectrum Disorder, Sarah N. Simon

Departmental Honors Projects

The prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a growing concern in schools across the nation. More students with high functioning autism are being mainstreamed, and students on and off the spectrum are being exposed to a wider variety of behaviors and new opportunities for friendship in school. Many students who fall on the autism spectrum suffer from the stigmatizing attitudes of their peers, and this stigmatization often stems from a lack of early education about mental health. Puppetry has been proven to captivate young audiences while teaching important messages in an entertaining and relatable way. The purpose of this …

Postural Sway In Infants At Low And High Risk For Autism Spectrum Disorder, Rachel C. Harris

Open Access Theses

ABSTRACT Harris, Rachel C. M. S., Purdue University, December 2014. Postural Control in Infants at Low and High Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder. Major Professor: Laura J. Claxton. Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder more commonly known for deficits in social and communication skills. More recently, aspects of motor development have been shown to be delayed in children with ASD, including deficits in their postural control abilities. Children with ASD have difficulty integrating information from their sensory systems to help control their balance. Infants at risk for ASD and infants who are later diagnosed with ASD have delays …

The Gender Of Participants In Published Research Involving People With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Erin Watkins

Masters Theses

Research articles involving participants with an autism spectrum disorder and published from 2010-2012 in Autism, Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, Journal of Child Psychology and Child Psychiatry, and Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders were examined to determine the reported gender of participants. The overall male:female ratio was 4.62, which is similar to that reported in epidemiological studies, but the ratio was 6.07 in intervention studies. These findings suggesting that males were in a statistical sense over-represented in intervention studies, but not in other kinds of research. Most (82.21%) of these studies included both male and female participants, but …

The Neurodevelopment Of Basic Sensory Processing And Integration In Autism Spectrum Disorder, Alice Brown Brandwein

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis presents three studies that together explore the neurophysiological basis for the sensory processing and integration abnormalities that have been observed in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) since the disorder was first described over half a century ago. In designing these studies we seek to fill a hole that currently exists in the research community‟s knowledge of the neurodevelopment of basic multisensory integration -- both in children with autism and as well as in those with typical development. The first study applied event related potentials (ERPs) and behavioral measures of multisensory integration to a large group of healthy participants ranging …

Exploring The Role Of Perceived Religiosity On Daily Life, Coping, And Parenting For Jewish Parents Of Children With Autism, Frances Rebecca Victory

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This two-part study (a) explores the multi-dimensional aspects of religious and psychosocial experience of Jewish mothers and fathers with and without a child with autism; and (b) uses a multi-method design to examine the influence of perceived religious beliefs, ritual practices, and community context on daily life, parenting, and coping processes for these parents. The first study included 20 fathers and 34 mothers of typically developing children. Participants were affiliated with Reform, Conservative, and Modern Orthodox Judaism. They completed three online q-sorts and five open-ended questions. The three q-sorts focused on the perceptions of religious beliefs, ritual practices, and community …

Quality Of Life In Emerging Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Staci Carr

Theses and Dissertations

This study is focused on exploring quality of life in young adults in the autism spectrum and the factors that contribute to their own perception of satisfaction with their lives. Autism Spectrum Disorder is a neurodevelopmental disability that is associated with deficits in social interaction and communication and with restricted and repetitive behaviors (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). There has been a documented increase in the diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), making it to be one of the fastest growing diagnosed disabilities in children (Hartley-McAndrew, 2014). In the United States, the prevalence of ASD is approximately 1 in 68 children, …

Operant And Respondent Procedures To Establish Social Stimuli As Reinforcers In Children With Autism, Paloma Rodriguez

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

According to the DSM-IV- TR (American Psychiatric Association, 2000), one of the core deficits in autism is in the impairment of social interaction. Some have suggested that underlying these deficits is the reality that individuals with autism do not find social stimuli to be as reinforcing as other types of stimuli (Dawson, 2008). An interesting and growing body of literature supports the notion that symptoms in autism may be caused by a general reduction in social motivation (Chevallier et al., 2012). A review of the literature suggests that social orienting and social motivation are low in individuals with autism, and …

Anxiety Symptoms In Individuals With High Functioning Autism, Jane C. Kelleher

Honors Scholar Theses

Research indicates a complicated relationship between anxiety disorders and autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). The current study examined the relationship between anxiety symptoms and ASD in 30 Optimal Outcome (OO) individuals, 33 High Functioning Autism (HFA) individuals, and 34 Typically Developing (TD) individuals. The groups were compared on the K-SADS measure of anxiety symptoms. The HFA group presented greater anxiety than both the OO and TD groups, and the OO and TD groups only differed on one anxiety symptom. Across all three groups, there was a significant association between greater anxiety symptoms and a higher level of social and communicative impairment. …

Social Communication And Theory Of Mind In Boys With Autism And Fragile X Syndrome, Jessica Klusek

Faculty Publications

Impairments in the social use of language, or pragmatics, constitute a core characteristic of autism. Problems with pragmatic language have also been documented in fragile X syndrome (FXS), a monogenic condition that is the most common known genetic cause of autism. Evidence suggests that social cognitive ability, or theory of mind, may also be impaired in both conditions, and in autism, may importantly relate to pragmatic language ability. Given the substantial overlap observed in autism and FXS, this study aimed to better define those social-communicative phenotypes that overlap in these two conditions by comparing pragmatic language ability and theory of …

Dsm-5: Rethinking Asperger’S Disorder, Lee A. Wilkinson

Lee A Wilkinson, PhD

No abstract provided.

Life In The Uncanny Valley: Workplace Issues For Knowledge Workers On The Autism Spectrum, Christina H. Rebholz

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Many journal articles about autism spectrum disorders have been published. The definition of “high-functioning autism” used in these papers may need to be reconsidered, as a segment of the population may be more skilled than has been historically thought. A percentage of people on the autism spectrum work in a high-paying professional capacity, in industries such as computer technology and health care. Their intellectual capacities allow them to successfully perform the portions of their jobs that require deep technical knowledge. However, they struggle with the cognitive and social issues associated with the autism spectrum, such as: concrete thinking; literal information …

Intact Statistical Word Learning In Autism Spectrum Disorders, Jessica Mayo

Master's Theses

Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) have impairments in language acquisition, but the underlying mechanism of these deficits is poorly understood. Implicit learning appears potentially relevant to language development, particularly in speech segmentation, which relies on sensitivity to the transitional probabilities between speech sounds. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between implicit learning and current language abilities in school-aged children with autism (n = 17) and typical development (n = 24) using a well-studied artificial language learning task. Results suggest that the ASD and TD groups were equally able to implicitly learn transitional probabilities from a lengthy …

How Many Doctors Does It Take To Diagnose An Autism Spectrum Disorder?, Lee A. Wilkinson

Lee A Wilkinson, PhD

No abstract provided.

Consequences Of Interest-Based Learning On The Social-Affective Behavior Of Young Children With Autism, Carol M. Trivette, Carl J. Dunst

Carol M. Trivette

Test-Retest Reliability Of Self-Reports Of Depression And Anxiety Among Students With High Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorders, Jill Williams

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Anxiety and depression are more prevalent in children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) than in the general population. Due to their cognitive impairments, and questions concerning the validity and reliability of their responses, it is unknown whether these individuals can accurately self-report their internalizing disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate the internal consistency reliability and test-retest reliability of self-reports of depression and anxiety amongst children and adolescents with ASDs. The study used a convenience sample of 31 subjects aged 8 to 17 with a diagnosis of high-functioning autism. Self-reports were administered using the Child Depression …

Joint Attention In Young Children With Autism, Sabrina Jara

Honors Scholar Theses

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are classified as pervasive developmental disorders characterized by social, communicative, and behavioral impairments. According to formal and informal reports, children with ASD present with receptive and expressive language delay. Joint attention (JA: the behavior that occurs when two individuals focus on the same object or event) has been identified as a possible marker of delayed language development in children with ASD. In this study, the JA behaviors in children with ASD were contrasted with initially language-matched typically developing (TYP) children across three visits.

Measures of language, the frequency, duration, and source of initiation of JA episodes, …

Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Electric Training Modules, Jennifer Stuehrenberg

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The South Central Crisis Center is a State Operated Services mental health facility in Mankato, Minnesota. The center is designed to offer people suffering an acute mental health episode, such as suicidal thoughts, or who need a medication adjustment or other psychiatric services, up to a few days in a safe, secure environment. The center accepts referrals from law enforcement, county or health care professionals in these participating counties: Blue Earth, Brown, Faribault, Freeborn, Le Sueur, Martin, Nicollet, Rice, Sibley and Watonwan. Recently, the program has been serving a larger amount of clients who have a diagnosis of Asperger’s Disorder …

Keep Public Places Open To The Autistic, Karen Falconer Al-Hindi, Carol Salber, Shawn Neff

Geography and Geology Faculty Publications

What does it mean to be "well-behaved"?

A recent Associated Press article (Aug. 17 World-Herald) discussed the "disruptive behavior" of individuals with autism. As mothers and activists on behalf of children with autism, we have a different perspective.

Season Of Birth Effects In Autism Spectrum Disorders, Kastley Marvin

Honors Scholar Theses

One factor that is investigated as a possible clue to etiological factors in Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is season of birth. Season of birth effects could be the result of temperature, toxins, dietary changes, viral infections, and cultural or social factors that change seasonally (Bolton, Pickles, Harrington, Macdonald, & Rutter, 1992). A number of studies have looked for season of birth effects in ASD with no conclusive results. The current study analyzed season of birth effects in a sample of 441 children diagnosed with ASD. Analysis was also repeated after excluding prematurely born children from the data. Level of functioning …