Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

After Being Ignored, Autistic Adults Find Their Place On The Spectrum, Leonardo A. Lopez Carreno

Capstones

Autistic adults have been historically ignored by researchers and clinical psychologists when discussing autism spectrum disorder. But the broadening of the diagnosis requirements for the disorder, as well as the perspectives from autistic adults that have been shared on social media, have made it so that autistic adults are being discussed more now than ever before, both in the autism community and among professionals in the field. This project puts together interviews with autistic people who have found communities online and in person, as well as the perspectives of researchers who have published studies about autism.

https://medium.com/@leonardolpezcarreo/after-being-ignored-autistic-adults-find-their-place-on-the-spectrum-6e131fc00796

Case Study - The Outcomes Of Occupational Therapy For An Autistic Teen, Molly Boyle

Honors Theses

This study sought to understand the outcomes of occupational therapy through interviews of a person with autism spectrum disorder (defined below), their family, and an occupational therapist. By interviewing each of these people, this study aimed to examine the impact of occupational therapy on the autonomy and independence of a young adult with autism and his family.

The Efficacy Of A Telepractice Service Delivery Model For Providing Speech And Language Services To Children With Asd, Myranda L. Marotta

Masters Theses

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic required the use of remote technologies for society and the workforce to function under quarantine conditions. The literature on telepractice services for individuals with ASD has proliferated during the past decade, especially during the past two years. Still, many publications on the topic lack scientific merit. This study utilized a quasi-experimental, single-subject, multiple-group, time-series design to investigate whether telepractice SLP services are at least as effective as the traditional, face-to-face delivery model.

Twenty-one students with autism spectrum disorder were included in this study. Additionally, 22 speech-language pathology graduate students and four SLP school professionals …

Intolerance Of Uncertainty, Sensory Processing, And Related Correlates In Autistic Children During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Mollie Bradley

Theses and Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic increased uncertainty and anxiety for most and was especially disruptive to autistic people and their families. Autistic children were particularly vulnerable due to their intolerance for increased uncertainty and disruption to their school and therapy support. This study aimed to investigate the effect that increased uncertainty had on autistic children, specifically their sensory behaviors and stress levels and on the stress levels of their primary caregivers. Parents and guardians of 47 autistic children completed an online survey consisting of questions investigating background and demographic information, their experiences during the first six months of the pandemic, information about …

Dynamic Measures Of Referential Communication Reveal Hidden Pragmatic Strengths For Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Mariana Schreuders

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

The ability to communicate effectively and efficiently while maintaining mutual understanding is a fundamental aspect of human-to-human interaction. Studies have shown that individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) face challenges in areas of social communication skills, such as aspects of referential communication; or the ability to refer to things in such a way that a listener will know what the speaker is describing. The current study used data from a preexisting Barrier study to compare the referential communication abilities of school-aged children with ASD to those of neurotypical children (NT). Referential communication was observed during a barrier task, where participants …

Pre-Pulse Inhibition In Mutated Mice: Studying Compromised Microglial Cells To Discover New Genetic Connections To Autism, Bailey R. Kramarik

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

Microglial cells “play a pivotal role in refining neural networks during early critical periods” (Gabriele & Gray, 2020, p. 1). A disturbance in the functioning of these microglial cells contribute to specific characteristics of some neurodevelopmental disorders- including autism spectrum disorder. In this study, we used a mouse model to study disruptions in cell activity, as understanding the biological and genetic background of autism spectrum disorder could help us provide better treatment and therapy options to those diagnosed.

The mutated mice in this experiment have microglial cells with “compromised fractalkine signaling” (Gabriele & Gray, 2020, p. 4-5). We studied multimodal …

The Impact Of Distance Education On Therapy Services For Students With Asd: An Slp Perspective, Andrea Spragg

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused an abrupt change in the day-to-day lives of individuals across the world as adults were forced to work from home and children were forced into virtual school environments. For all students, this disruption in schedule and daily routine been hard, but especially those with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) (Mumbardo-Adam et al., 2021). For many students with ASD, school is a place in which they receive many essential services and social interactions, such as speech therapy, that they may not receive other places. The purpose of this survey research was to understand the …

Measuring Referential Communication Dynamically In Older Children With Asd, Caitlin Lee

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Research finds individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are relatively ineffective and/or inefficient at referential communication. However, this research typically uses static metrics of efficacy (how accurately messages were relayed) and efficiency (overall word count), rather than dynamic ones (e.g., Does the speaker alter subsequent descriptions when the listener previously misunderstood them?). The aim of this research is to use dynamic measures of efficacy and efficiency to examine how speakers with and without ASD adjust their message to meet listener needs across time. Fifteen older children with (n = 8) and without (n = 7) ASD were included. …

Like, It’S Important: The Frequency And Use Of Like In Autism Spectrum Disorder, Rebekah Jones

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Background & Aims: Discourse markers, such as well or like serve a variety of functions to support conversational reciprocity: filling pauses, aiding word-finding, holding conversational turns, and providing information about pause length. Previous research shows that individuals with ASD use discourse markers less frequently than neurotypical (NT) peers; however, the discourse marker like has been left out of that research, despite its ubiquitous use by NT individuals, and despite the fact that like serves important pragmatic functions that are not encoded by any other discourse marker. Specifically, like signals to the listener that the content of upcoming speech is 1) …

Responses To Partner Comments And Acknowledgements In Students With And Without Autism, Kaitlyn Bresette

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Some children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) initiate and respond less frequently than neurotypicals (NT) during language sampling tasks. More information is needed regarding how partner behaviors, such as comments and acknowledgements and the sampling context, influence the types of responses provided by children with ASD. This research study examined responses to adult comments and acknowledgments in two language sampling tasks, a traditional Share and Tell sample and a Double Interview sample (Garcia-Winner, 2002).

Participants. Fifty-eight participants, between the ages of 10 and 17 years, were recruited across two labs. The sample consisted of 28 adolescents with ASD …

A Systematic Review Of Music Therapy For Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Alana Andrus

Honors Theses

Music therapy has been suggested to be effective in Autism. The purpose of this systematic review was to assess the effectiveness of music therapy as a potential treatment option for individuals with autism spectrum disorder, or ASD. To obtain published records, a PubMed search was conducted with the search term “music therapy autism,” which generated 187 studies. Each study was evaluated for relativity to the topic at hand. The remaining 151 articles were assessed for support status, as well as other later suggested research, in order to more confidently support music therapy as a treatment option for ASD patients. Approximately …

The Influence Of Improv Experience On Uncertainty Tolerance, Social Anxiety, And Communication In Adolescents On The Autism Spectrum, Kathryn K. Desbiens

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

This study examined the influence of an improvisational theater experience on perceptions of social anxiety, intolerance of uncertainty (IU), and quality of communication life in autistic adolescents. Seven participants were recruited from Indiana University’s Camp Yes And, a virtual day camp specializing in teaching improv strategies to autistic adolescents. Participants completed three scales measuring social anxiety, IU, and quality of communication life via surveys sent prior to and after attending the camp. It was hypothesized that levels of social anxiety and IU would decrease while quality of communication life would increase. Results indicated that pre- and post-test survey responses showed …

Illuminate Academy Kindergarten Market Research And Shine Shop, Shauna Rocha

OTD Capstone Projects

This doctoral capstone was completed through a partnership with Illuminate Academy in Nashville, Tennessee. Illuminate Academy is a not-for-profit alternative to a public or private school for children with autism spectrum disorder and developmental disabilities. One of the primary foci of this project was to develop a kindergarten market research guide comparing Illuminate Academy with other inclusive kindergarten programs as a resource for the agency as well as current and prospective families in Middle Tennessee. Another primary focus of this project was to create social media and marketing materials for Illuminate Academy’s Shine Shop, a transition service that provides students …

Nutrition Perception, Dietary Intake, And Anthropometric Correlations Between Autism Spectrum Disorder And Typically Developing Adolescents., Kristin M. Berg

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The adolescent’s nutrition perception is reflected in dietary intake and body composition. Obesity is prevalent among adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Dietary habits of children with ASD are affected by sensory issues, gastrointestinal factors, and parental provision of diet. This cross-sectional study identifies the relationships among variables for dietary intake, nutrition perception of intake, and anthropometric measurements for adiposity for 19 adolescents, ages 11 to 17, with ASD. Twenty-four children who are typically developing (TD) were assessed to compare all variables for significant differences. Measurements of variables of interest were obtained from the adolescent subjects: a 24-hour recall of …

Physical Activity As A Predictor Of Obesity In Autistic Children, Cody A. Mullins

MSU Graduate Theses

Research has found autistic children to be 40% more likely to be obese compared to their non-autistic peers. Reduced physical activity (PA) is thought to be a contributing factor to the increased prevalence of obesity in autistic children. This was one of the first studies to investigate the PA behaviors of autistic children during an adapted physical education (APE) class using accelerometry. The purpose of this study was to examine the PA of autistic children and determine the relationship between PA and obesity. Participants were recruited from a school for students with disabilities who participate in a once-weekly APE class …

Aac Use By Children With Asd And Their Aac Co-Pilots, Kelcy Rolak

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Employing a multiple case study approach, this study explored the perspectives of parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) on their child’s use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Deemed “AAC co-pilots” by this study, these parents play a crucial role in their children’s daily AAC use, yet their perspective is largely under-explored in existing research that otherwise explores AAC use by individuals with ASD extensively. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents of children with ASD who have used AAC for at least one year and whose AAC use is documented in their IEP. Findings indicated the depth and …

Parents’ Perspectives On Early Intervention For Children With Autism, Tiffany Schmidt

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this study was to analyze parent perspectives on early intervention services for children with autism. Research has shown a significant positive impact of early intervention on children with autism. A total of eight parents participated in this basic qualitative study guided by social cognitive theory. Participating parents were those whose child had an autism diagnosis and were receiving or had received early intervention services in Southeast Michigan. Data analysis included establishing themes and codes to organize the data into categories. Thematic analysis was applied by analyzing interview transcripts. The research questions used to collect data addressed parents’ …

Impacting Students: Students With Disabilities Participating In A Theater Occupation-Based Program, Markii D. Landry

Occupational Therapy Doctorate Capstone Projects

Acting Creates Therapeutic Success (ACTS Jr.) is a program that uses theater and drama activities to address a variety of skills. Theater advantageously offers a variety of activities that suit the individual (costume and prop making, set design, screenplay writing, etc.), many that fall under the scope of occupational therapy, and is executed well as a form of group therapy given its innate camaraderie of actors and production members working together to form a final cohesive product (Phillips, 1996). The purpose of this study was to demonstrate how theater can be used as a meaningful activity for students with disabilities …

Crisis Intervention Team Training On Autism Among Female Cit-Trained Police Officers, Julie Hall

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem addressed in this qualitative case study was the lack of documentation that supports the perceptions and experiences of crisis intervention team (CIT) trained female police officers related to their encounters with persons with mental illness (PwMI) with autism. Using Giles’s communicative accommodation theory (CAT), the purpose of this study examined the perceptions of CIT-trained female police officers of PwMI with autism during encounters. Giles’s CAT was aligned closest with the teachings of CIT training. Seven participants provided data which comprised of completed questionnaires and transcribed interviews. The method of analysis used was a combination of inductive coding and …

A Literature Resource For Those Supporting Patients With Autism Spectrum Disorder And Cancer, Kaylee James

Psychology Doctoral Specialization Projects

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that impacts both social interaction and patterns of behavior. ASD is rooted in genetic, biological, and environmental causes. Cancer begins when cells grow out of control and there is also a genetic and biological cause of cancer. There is an overlap between the genetic and biological causes of ASD and cancer. As a result, evidence supports an increased risk of developing some types of cancer as well as protective factors for some times of cancer for individuals with ASD. Therefore, individuals with ASD may be at a heightened risk to develop cancer, …

Let’S Have A Playdate! Comparing Autistic Children's Social Behavior During Play Sessions With Siblings Versus Peers, Clare Boldt

Scripps Senior Theses

Autistic individuals can struggle with social interactions and forming friendships. While siblings and peers are used for social skills intervention, there is a paucity of research analyzing differences in autistic children’s play with siblings versus peers. Investigating these behavior differences helps clinicians learn how to best support social skill development, improve sibling relationships, and determine ideal peer mediators for interventions. I compare social behaviors of autistic children during play sessions with their sibling versus a non-sibling peer. The behaviors measured were prosocial behaviors, cooperative and parallel play, verbalizations (appropriate and inappropriate), aggressive behaviors, eloping, and stereotypy. Based on previous literature, …