AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER Discussion on Autism Spectrum Disorder Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a developmental and neurological disorder that occurs at the initial stage of life, that is, childhood and lasts throughout the rest of the stages of life. Due toa wide range of symptoms, the use of the word ‘spectrum’ is used to denote the disorder. In the event of autism spectrum disorder, the child may face difficulty in learning, communicating, or interacting with others (Kanner & Asperger, 2016). Presently, there is no standard treatment to cure ASD and early intervention becomes extremely critical to improve the child’s ability to learn new skills and grow like normal individuals. Autism, also known as a pervasive or neurodevelopmental disorder, is characterized by three core deficits, which includes stereotyped and repetitive patterns of interest or behaviors, impaired communication, and impaired restricted and reciprocal social interaction (Schmitt et al., 2019). The following section of the paper will analyse three case studies to recognise any potential symptoms of autism in the children and direct the parents to the standard procedure of diagnosis and relevant recommendations. Case Example 1 As per the description of Ben and his activities, few unusual behaviors can be noted down. The lack of interest in socializing or interacting with the family members is characteristic of autism spectrum disorder falling under the character deficit of impaired reciprocal social interaction. With such characteristics, the child, when grown-up, may face immense difficulty in sharing emotions and interests with others and maintain an adequate amount of social interaction (Scandurra et al., 2019). Early intervention such as family training can be critical to help reduce the child in improving skills of back & forth interaction with the family members and others in later stages of life.
AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER Case Example 2 Carolyn from case example 2 is described to be a girl who likes to socialize with others. However, the description of the child provides a hint of repetitive pattern of behavior. Carolyn was found to have pervasive difficulties when she was 3 years old and is still facing them after 9 years. Repetitive behavior observed in the child is circumscribed interest. As the child has already grown up and moving towards adolescence, the parents should prepare for Cognitive behavioral therapy of the children and start immediately with the intervention to ensure speedier improvement of the child’s autistic behavior. Case Example 3 Dennis is a bright boy, but from his description, significant evidence of the child’s impaired ability to socialize and interacting is observed. Dennis is at earlier stages of childhood, and it is the right time to intervene with the goal of improving the child’s ability to feel confident in social situations and absorb the events around him with better understanding. With the help of formal diagnosis and intervention such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, the child will be able to socialize better in later stages of life (Spain & Happé, 2019). Conclusion Autism Spectrum Disorders are critical disorders that begin in early childhood, and the symptoms can remain the entire lifetime if not intervened properly. The above case examples reflect one of the three core deficits of ASD and provide effective intervention options for the parents to choose from.
AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER References Kanner, L., & Asperger, H. (2016). Introduction to Autism. Scandurra, V., Emberti Gialloreti, L., Barbanera, F., Scordo, M., Pierini, A., & Canitano, R. (2019). Neurodevelopmental Disorders and Adaptive Functions: A Study of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and/or Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).Frontiers in psychiatry,10, 673. Schmitt, L. M., Bojanek, E., White, S. P., Ragozzino, M. E., Cook, E. H., Sweeney, J. A., & Mosconi, M. W. (2019). Familiality of behavioral flexibility and response inhibition deficits in autism spectrum disorder (ASD).Molecular Autism,10(1), 47. Spain, D., & Happé, F. (2019). How to Optimise Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) for People with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD): A Delphi Study.Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, 1-25.