Communication Sciences and Disorders Commons^™

Intervention With Children With Autism: The Effect Of Using A Robot On Participation In Reciprocal Play, Shereen Ririe

Theses and Dissertations

The current study was part of a larger work investigating the effects of intervention incorporating a robot on the social engagement behaviors of children with autism. The larger study implemented a single-subject, multiple-baseline research design in which four children with autism participated in baseline sessions, traditional intervention, intervention including a robot, and follow-up sessions. The current study focused on the participant's responses to directives from the clinician and the parent during collaborative activities that included the robot. Children's responses were analyzed to determine if they responded to directives without assistance, responded with hand-over-hand assistance, or did not comply. Sessions were …

The Effect Of A Robot On Children With Severe Autism During A Song Activity, Michelle Nelson

Theses and Dissertations

This study is a small portion of a larger work examining the effects of low dosage robot use in interactive and social engagement therapy for children with autism. The purpose of this study was to investigate the participation of the subjects during song activities. Four children were used as participants, each receiving a total of 20 play-based treatment sessions targeting engagement and social interaction. The clinician incorporated the robot into these treatment sessions for 10 minute long segments within a 50 minute session. The current study analyzed these 10 minute segments with the robot, coding turn-taking behaviors. Results indicated that, …

Treatment For Children With High Functioning Autism: A Comparison Of Social Stories To Musically Adapted Social Stories, Veronica M. Torres

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The incorporation of music and social stories has been seldom tested, thus a study which uses a single-subject, alternating treatment design assesses the effects of standard social stories versus musically adapted social stories on the pragmatic abilities of an individual with high-functioning autism is presented. The goal of this project was to determine whether read social stories versus musically adapted social stories would be more beneficial in reducing problem behaviors in a child with high-functioning autism. Both types of social stories were implemented with the participant and the data supported the effectiveness of both treatments. Though the musically adapted social …

Effects Of Augmentative And Alternative Device On Echolalia In Autism, Cynthia Valenzuela

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study was a systematic replication of Mueller and Forbes (n.d.), which evaluated the effects of a high-tech and low-tech augmentative alternative communication (AAC) device on reducing echolalia in a verbal child with autism during conversational speech. The participant for this study was a verbal eleven-year male, who was diagnosed with autism prior to the study. A single subject alternating treatment research design was used to evaluate the effect of a high-tech speech generating AAC device (Proloquo2go) on echolalia. The participant was seen periodically twice a week for two months and periodically for one month. A functional analysis(Prizant & Rydell, …

The Effect Of Intervention Using A Robot On The Social Engagement Behaviors Of Four Children With Autism In Interaction With An Unfamiliar Adult, Sarai Sophia Dodge

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effect of low doses of interactive therapy with a robot on the basic social engagement skills of four children with autism in interaction with an unfamiliar adult. The current study was part of a larger work investigating the effects of treatment incorporating a robot on the social engagement behaviors of children with autism. A single-subject, multiple-baseline research design was implemented and included four types of sessions: baseline, traditional intervention, intervention including the robot, and follow-up. Each participant received a total of 20 intervention sessions in addition to baseline and follow-up sessions. Intervention with the robot was …

The Effects Of Utilizing A Robot On The Social Engagement Behaviors Of Children With Autism In A Triadic Interaction, Kristi Anne Blanchard

Theses and Dissertations

The study presents the use of a humanoid robot to facilitate social engagement behaviors in four children with autism. These children were enrolled in a semester long treatment program based on components of the SCERTS model designed to facilitate social communication (Prizant, 2003). Following baseline, children received intervention sessions with and without the robot. During sessions involving the robot, each child would participate in a 10 minute interaction (as part of a 50 minute sessions) using a robot to facilitate interaction with a graduate clinician or parent. The interactions were recorded and analyzed for occurrences of social engagement behaviors. This …

The Effect Of Utilizing A Humanoid Robot On Social Engagement Behaviors In Children With Autism During Interaction With A Familiar Adult, Alyssa Stabenow

Theses and Dissertations

This study focused on intervention using a humanoid robot to facilitate social engagement and joint attention in four children with autism. Intervention was conducted over a three month period, with each child receiving pre-testing, intervention, and post-testing. Intervention was based on the SCERTS model (Prizant, Wetherby, Rubin, & Laurent, 2003). Pre- and post-testing involved interactions with a parent, a familiar adult interaction, a less-familiar adult interaction, and a triadic interaction. This study focuses on the baseline and follow-up testing from the interaction with the familiar adult. Following a period of traditional intervention, sessions involving a humanoid robot (named Troy) were …

Acoustic Differences In The Imitation Of Prosodic Patterns In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Joshua J. Diehl, Rhea Paul

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

In research, it has been difficult to characterize the prosodic production differences that have been observed clinically in autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Moreover, the nature of these differences has been particularly hard to identify. This study examined one possible contributor to these perceived differences: motor planning. We examined the ability of children and adolescents with ASD to imitate prosodic patterns in comparison to a group with learning disabilities (LD) and a typically developing (TD) comparison group. Overall, we found that both the ASD and LD groups were significantly worse at perceiving and imitating prosodic patterns than the TD comparison group. …

Bridging The Research Gap: Making Hri Useful To Individuals With Autism, Elizabeth Kim, Rhea Paul, Frederick Shic, Brian Scassellati

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

While there is a rich history of studies involving robots and individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), few of these studies have made substantial impact in the clinical research community. In this paper we first examine how differences in approach, study design, evaluation, and publication practices have hindered uptake of these research results. Based on ten years of collaboration, we suggest a set of design principles that satisfy the needs (both academic and cultural) of both the robotics and clinical autism research communities. Using these principles, we present a study that demonstrates a quantitatively measured improvement in human-human social interaction …

Sally J. Rogers And Geraldine Dawson: Review Of Early Start Denver Model For Young Children With Autism: Promoting Language, Learning And Engagement (Book Review), Rhea Paul

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

Book review by Rhea Paul:

Rogers, Sally R. and Geraldine Dawson. Early Start Denver Model for Young Children with Autism: Promoting Language, Learning and Engagement. New York: Guilford Press, 2010. 9781606236321; 9781606234914 (pbk.)

Understanding Autism, Kaileigh J. Sweeney

Senior Honors Projects

Understanding Autism

Kaileigh Sweeney

Faculty Sponsor: Carolyn Hames

Autism spectrum disorders are greatly misunderstood in today’s society.  In the United States, it is estimated that 1 in 110 children are diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder.  Despite this high prevalence, a great deal of the population is under the impression that a diagnosis of autism is straight forward and indicative of one set of devastating signs and symptoms.  However, the severity of this disorder can range from mild to severe. According to the National Institute of Health, an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a range of complex neurodevelopment disorders characterized …

Out Of The Mouths Of Babes: Vocal Production In Infant Siblings Of Children With Asd, Rhea Paul, Yael Fuerst, Gordon Ramsay, Kasia Chawarska, Ami Klin

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

Background: Younger siblings of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are at higher risk for acquiring these disorders than the general population. Language development is usually delayed in children with ASD. The present study examines the development of pre-speech vocal behavior in infants at risk for ASD due to the presence of an older sibling with the disorder. Methods: Infants at high risk (HR) for ASD and those at low risk, without a diagnosed sibling (LR), were seen at 6, 9, and 12 months as part of a larger prospective study of risk for ASD in infant siblings. Standard clinical …

The Effect Of A Treatment Program Utilizing A Humanoid Robot On Social Engagement Of Two Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Margaret Michele Maxfield

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of a robot (Troy) in a low-dose treatment protocol for two children with Autism Spectrum disorder. The efficacy of intervention was measured by comparing social engagement in two contexts: interactions with two adults and interaction with an unfamiliar adult. During the treatment, a robot was included in pseudo-triadic interactions with the clinician and the child. The robot was programmed to perform simple actions that imitated the actions of the clinician in an effort to engage the child. These pseudo-triadic interactions were incorporated into intervention over the course of a 16-session …

The Effects Of The Use Of A Humanoid Robot On Social Engagement In Two Children With Autism, Aersta Kayleen Acerson

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the effects of intervention using a robot on the social interactions of two children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Robots have been shown to facilitate human-robot interaction in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, yet research has not fully investigated the use of robots to enhance interactions between children with ASD and human conversational partners. The purpose of this study was to investigate the ability of a low-dose intervention procedure using a robot to increase social engagement between each child and his communication partner. Although variable, results were promising and suggested that additional investigation is warranted.

Utilizing Music In Speech And Language Therapy For Preschool Children And Children With Autism: A Systematic Review, Joelle Kay Johanson

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This thesis was conducted as a systematic review. A systematic review is an assessment and evaluation of current research that attempts to answer a clinical question. The purpose of this systematic review was to attempt to answer the following clinical question: Are there high-quality studies that document the effectiveness of using music in speech and language therapy with preschool aged children and children with autism? This review also attempted to identify future research implications and needs. Nine studies were reviewed and critiqued; six preschool based studies and three autism based studies. Results indicated a general positive change in speech and …

The Neural Underpinnings Of Prosody In Autism, Inge-Marie Eigsti, Jillian Schuh, Einar Mencl, Robert T. Schultz, Rhea Paul

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

This study examines the processing of prosodic cues to linguistic structure and to affect, drawing on fMRI and behavioral data from 16 high-functioning adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and 11 typically developing controls. Stimuli were carefully matched on pitch, intensity, and duration, while varying systematically in conditions of affective prosody (angry versus neutral speech) and grammatical prosody (questions versus statement). To avoid conscious attention to prosody, which normalizes responses in young people with ASD, the implicit comprehension task directed attention to semantic aspects of the stimuli. Results showed that when perceiving prosodic cues, both affective and grammatical, activation of …

The Effects Of Peer Training Social Intervention On Social Interactions Of Children With Autism, Mindy Leigh Krebs

Student Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the effects of a peer training intervention on social interactions among two subjects with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and four typically developing peers. A multiple probe (Horner & Baer, 1978) across tasks, replicated across participants design, was used to evaluate these effects. Prior to data collection, a task sequence analysis was created to identify and describe the specific behavioral steps and sequence needed for successful acquisition of attention maintenance. Sub-behaviors selected for acquisition included: 1) maintaining eye contact or directional gaze; 2) maintaining close proximity to peer while interacting; 3) directing or initiating conversation with the peer; …

The Effect Of A Three Point Sensory Diet On Vocal And Verbal Behavior In A Non-Verbal Child On The Autism Scale, Chelsey Danielle Smith

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The study involved a single subject, a non-verbal child on the autism spectrum, in a clinical setting over a 10 week period. The subject was on a three point sensory diet that was administered before therapy sessions. The tactile, vestibular and proprioceptive systems were targeted with deep pressure touch, a suspension swing, and joint compression. The primary focus was on participation in therapy and language development with specific attention given to the increase of vocalizations and/or verbalizations. The child experienced the sensory diet for schedule of 1 week off, 2 weeks on, 1 week off, 2 weeks on, 1 week …

Thinking Outside Of The Assessment Box: Assessing Social Communicative Functioning In Students With Asd, Janet L. Dodd

Communication Sciences and Disorders Faculty Articles and Research

The assessment of a student suspected of an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis requires the integration of information collected by a variety of professionals across various domains of functioning. One of the core deficits of students with ASD is a deficit related to social communicative competence (SCC). SCC requires the integration of language, social cognition, and higher order executive functions (Coggins, Olswang, Carmichael Olsson, & Timler, 2003) This article will propose an assessment model of social communicative functioning that was developed based on the SCC framework of Coggins and colleagues as a component of the Comprehensive Multidisciplinary Assessment Protocols for …

Phonological Accuracy And Intelligibility In Connected Speech Of Boys With Fragile X Syndrome Or Down Syndrome, Elizabeth Barnes, Joanne Roberts, Steven Long, Gary E. Martin, Mary C. Berni, Kerry C. Mandulak, John Sideris

Speech Pathology and Audiology Faculty Research and Publications

Purpose: To compare the phonological accuracy and speech intelligibility of boys with fragile X syndrome with autism spectrum disorder (FXS-ASD), fragile X syndrome only (FXS-O), Down syndrome (DS), and typically developing (TD) boys.

Method: Participants were 32 boys with FXS-O (3–14 years), 31 with FXS-ASD (5–15 years), 34 with DS (4–16 years), and 45 TD boys of similar nonverbal mental age. We used connected speech samples to compute measures of phonological accuracy, phonological process occurrence, and intelligibility.

Results: The boys with FXS, regardless of autism status, did not differ from TD boys on phonological accuracy and phonological …

Defining Spoken Language Benchmarks And Selecting Measures Of Expressive Language Development For Young Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Helen Tager-Flusberg, Sally Rogers, Judith Cooper, Rebecca Landa, Catherine Lord, Rhea Paul, Mabel Rice, Carol Stoel-Gammon, Amy Wetherby, Paul Yoder

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

Purpose: The aims of this article are twofold: (a) to offer a set of recommended measures that can be used for evaluating the efficacy of interventions that target spoken language acquisition as part of treatment research studies or for use in applied settings and (b) to propose and define a common terminology for describing levels of spoken language ability in the expressive modality and to set benchmarks for determining a child's language level in order to establish a framework for comparing outcomes across intervention studies.
Method: The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders assembled a group of researchers …

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, …

Categorical Perception Of Stop Consonants In Children With Autism, Laura Bourdeau

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine whether children with autism recognize the same perceptual voicing boundaries of stop consonants as normally developing children of the same age group. This was explored using three groups of participants: ten children with autism between the ages of 8-14, five typically developing children between the ages of 8-14, and five typically developing seven-year-old children. Children in all groups listened to initial stop consonant syllables with voicing contrasts, with voiced and voiceless cognates presented. The initial consonants were altered along a voice onset time continuum within the typically perceived boundaries of each consonant. …

Pragmatic Assessment In Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Comparison Of A Standard Measure With Parent Report, Brian Reichow, Shawn Salamack, Rhea Paul, Fred Volkmar, Ami Klin

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to investigate the concurrent validity of subtests on the Comprehensive Assessment of Spoken Language (CASL) by comparing them with the assessment of communication and social skills on the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (Vineland). The participants were 35 children and adolescents with higher functioning autism spectrum disorders (ASD) who had received both the CASL and the Vineland. Results of the study suggest that the Pragmatic Judgment and Inferences subtests of the CASL appeared to document the difficulties that individuals with ASD had in adaptive use of language for communication.

Production Of Syllable Stress In Speakers With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Rhea Paul, Nancy Bianchi, Amy Augustyn, Ami Klin, Fred Volkmar

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

This paper reports a study of the ability to reproduce stress in a nonsense syllable imitation task by adolescent speakers with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), as compared to typically developing (TD) age-mates. Results are reported for both raters’ judgments of the subjects’ stress production, as well as acoustic measures of pitch range and duration during stressed and unstressed syllable production. Results reveal small but significant differences between speakers with ASD and typical speakers in both perceptual ratings of stress and instrumental measures of duration of syllables. The implications of these findings for understanding prosodic deficits in ASD are discussed.

Auditory Processing Disorder, Rhea Paul

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

A response from the editor is presented in response to a question on on the nature of auditory processing disorder (APD) in children.

A Comparison Of Morphophonic Faces And The Picture Exchange Communication System On The Production Of Verbal Communication In Preschoolers With Autism, Ashley Nicole Bourque

LSU Master's Theses

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) exhibit difficulties with both verbal and nonverbal language with approximately 50% of children diagnosed with autism remaining functionally mute into adulthood (Charlop & Haymes, 1994; Charlop-Christy, Carpenter, Le, LeBlanc, & Kellet, 2002). This study explored intervention using the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) for two nonverbal preschoolers with ASD. The effects of PECS using two picture systems, Picture and Words (P&W) and MorphoPhonic (MPh) picture word, was assessed in the communicative outcomes after 6 weeks of intervention. This study asked if MPh picture words would elicit more picture-exchange communication acts in functional contexts than …

Creating A Curriculum To Integrate Augmentative And Alternative Communication In A Preschool Setting, Megan R. Graham

Communication Disorders and Occupational Therapy Undergraduate Honors Theses

Background/Introduction: Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices are tools used to help individuals with speech difficulties to communicate. The University of Arkansas AAC Lab is designed to develop and evaluate technology and implementation strategies for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. In this research setting, we used Proloquo2Go, TouchChat, and a developing AAC program. I have created a curriculum for this Lab that integrates this AAC program into a preschool setting for preschoolers with extensive support needs. Purpose: This project was meant to create a pre-school curriculum for special needs preschoolers implementing models of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Therapy, Occupational …

Autism In A 15-Month-Old Child, Ami Klin, Katarzyna Chawarska, Rhea Paul, Emily Rubin, L. Weisner, Fred Volkmar

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

Autism is a developmental disorder marked by severe deficits in reciprocal social interaction, communication, and imagination as well as repetitive and restricted patterns of interests and behavior. Klin et al describe the findings of an interdisciplinary developmental disabilities evaluation of a 15-month-old girl with autism.

Adaptive Behavior In Autism And Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified: Microanalysis Of Scores On The Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales, Rhea Paul, Stephanie Miles, Domenic Cicchetti, Sara Sparrow, Ami Klin, Fred Volkmar, Megan Coflin, Shelley Booker

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study is to provide a microanalysis of differences in adaptive functioning seen between well-matched groups of school-aged children with autism and those diagnosed as having Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified, all of whom functioned in the mild to moderate range of intellectual impairment. Findings indicate that the major area of difference between children with autism and those with Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified, was expressive communication; specifically, the use of elaborations in syntax and morphology and in pragmatic use of language to convey and to seek information in discourse. Linear discriminant function analysis revealed that scores …