The purpose of this phenomenological study was to obtain caregivers’ perspectives on the impact of the sensory environment on participation in daily activities of their young children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Interviews were completed with 34 caregivers of children with ASD ages 3–7 yr. Results strongly suggest that parents and caregivers were pivotal in enabling participation for their children through the implementation of specific strategies and a parental decision-making process. The decision-making process considered amount of effort necessary to support participation and whether participation in a given activity was perceived as essential or nonessential. Strategies enabled participation and reduced the effort required to support the child’s participation. Strategies either directly related to the sensory factors of the environment or focused on reducing behavioral responses associated with sensory factors. In this study, we identified important considerations to enhance participation in the home and community environments for children with ASD.
People diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSDs) experience significant health disparity due to cardiovascular disease. One key to cardiovascular health is physical activity (PA). In addition, sedentary behavior is recognized as a health threat, independent of PA levels. The current study sought to identify the relationship of psychiatric symptoms of SSD to measured PA and sedentary behavior. Findings indicated that less than half of the sample obtained the recommended minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) per week. Subjects who were younger and had greater cognitive disorganization engaged in more minutes of MVPA. In contrast, sedentary behavior was only associated with aspects of metacognitive functioning, such that subjects who had greater ability for forming integrated representations of themselves and the related capacity to use knowledge of themselves spent less time in sedentary behaviors. This study expands upon the limited literature available on individuals with SSD and PA levels.
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