The diagnosis of autism, although a source of discussion and occasional controversy, has consistently included poor communication as an essential component. Both the text revision of the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (American Psychiatric Association, 2000) and the 10th edition of the International Classification of Diseases (World Health Organization, 1993) cite qualitative impairments in communication as central diagnostic criteria. Some researchers have even indicated that the communication deficits associated With the disability of autism are its most significant deficit (Rutter & Schopler, 1988).
Background/Aim: Sensory-based interventions, including sensory integration therapy (SIT), are one of the most highly requested and provided services for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Although SIT is predominantly provided by occupational therapists, other service providers, including speech-language pathologists, are expected to understand and, on occasion, are requested to integrate SIT into their treatment. The purpose of this study was to determine whether: (a) SIT improved the communication skills of children with autism, specifically spontaneity, complexity of utterance, and engagement; (b) effects continued following the provision of SIT; and (c) effects were consistent across young children with autism with different learning profiles. Methods: A single-subject applied behaviour analysis design was implemented to assess the effectiveness of SIT on verbal spontaneity, grammatical complexity (measured through mean length of utterance) and engagement in four young children with ASD, measuring each area before, during and after SIT. The effects of sensory integration intervention were measured by comparing each participant's expressive language and engagement in a no-treatment phase (A phase) to those same skills in the treatment phase (B phase). Findings: All of the participants performed best in the occupational therapy or post-occupational therapy conditions for spontaneity, complexity of utterance, and engagement, and the worst in the pre-occupational therapy condition. Specifically, the greatest percentage of spontaneity was noted post-SIT, with the longest measured length of utterance during SIT, and the greatest engagement found both during and post-SIT. The pre-SIT condition consistently ranked as the lowest for all dependent measures. Conclusions: Results from this small study indicate that the SIT condition (occupational therapy) yielded better communication and engagement than the condition immediately prior (pre-occupational therapy); therefore, specific components of SIT need to be examined, particularly issues of motivation and momentum.
This study examined data collected over a period of three years from 48 children adopted from Eastern European orphanages. English language acquisition and present levels of performance were measured by the standardised language assessment, the Comprehensive Assessment of Spoken Language (CASL). The participants ranged from 3 to 16 years of age, and were assessed on three separate occasions, one year apart, using the core assessment battery of the CASL. Results showed there were significant differences found for the non-literal language and pragmatic judgment subscales when measured across time. Beyond those areas, there was little developmental change in language scores. Other findings were that at the initial assessment or baseline, time in country heavily influenced subscales, supporting previous research that children in the country for shorter periods of time performed better than those in the USA for longer periods. Results of this study support the need for early intervention in language use for this population. While opportunities exist in the school setting for pragmatic skills to develop, these limited experiences may not be enough for foreign-born adopted children to catch up to non-adopted peers.
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