Perseverative conversation is a problem vocal behavior that is unique to individuals with Asperger's disorder. It is characterized by long-winded monologues revolving around circumscribed interests. The current research literature suggests that perseverative conversation may exacerbate already poor social relations, impede productivity at work and home, and lead to disruptive behavior when it is restricted. Despite the negative repercussions there is a lack of research related to the assessment and treatment of this behavior. In the field of applied behavior analysis, concurrent operants assessments have been used effectively to identify relative preference for concurrently available reinforcers. In the current study, choice assessments using concurrent operants arrangements were used to evaluate the reinforcing properties of perseverative conversation in children and adolescents with Asperger's disorder. Five participants, all with Asperger's disorder and reported difficulties with perseverative conversation, were assessed in three phases: A preference assessment for conversation topics; an assessment of preference for reinforcer dimensions; and an assessment of preference for competing dimensions. In the first phase a two-stage preference assessment separated high-preferred from less-preferred conversation topics and in the second and third phases participants were asked to make choices regarding their preference for conversation content, conversational style, and conversation duration. Phase II results suggested that participants preferred conversing about their respective circumscribed interests over neutral topics, actively conversing rather than listening, and conversing for longer duration rather than shorter duration. Phase III, which assessed relative preference for the three reinforcer dimensions, resulted in a hierarchy of preference for all but one participant. Two participants demonstrated the strongest preference for conversation content and two participants demonstrated the strongest preference for conversational style. Conversation duration was least preferred by four of the five participants. Perseverative conversation occurred at a relatively high rate across all assessment phases. The results are discussed in terms of current theoretical explanations for perseverative thinking and behavior, implications for treatment, and future research of this problem vocal behavior.

Since the 1970s, music librarians have been discussing the challenges of cataloging music media. In the 1990s, they began work on a Music Thesaurus to provide a multi-faceted approach to indexing, cataloging, and retrieving music media. In 1999 Indiana University proposed a digital music library, to allow for better indexing and retrieval in addition to content-based music retrieval. In 2000, a commercial venture, The Music Genome Project ©, began cataloging sound recordings of popular music by hundreds of musical characteristics and has created a user interface that allows listeners to enter the title and artist of a certain piece of music and receive recommendations for similar music to then purchase via Pandora.com. The following paper will address the question: how might current analyzing and classifying methods be used to provide additional indexing that facilitates retrieval and use of sound recordings by special populations, specifically professionals treating children with Asperger’s syndrome?

This research addresses the lack of an existing psychometrically sound Aspergers Syndrome self-screening instrument for adults. Initial instrument development procedures were carried out by creating an item pool using existing Asperger measures. Items were rewritten following common item writing rules suggested by several researchers as reference. Five new domains were created and the items were re-categorized. Expert panel of nine judges specialized in Psychometrics, ASD, School Psychology, and Speech-Language Pathology were asked to rate the relevancy of items to their domains in order to obtain evidence of content validity. These experts were chosen because of their relatedness to Aspergers Syndrome and their expertise in instrument development. First, the quality of the judges ratings were examined to identify any aberrant judges. Ratings were then analyzed using the remaining six judges using three descriptive and three quantitative methods to examine the representativeness and relevancy of each item to their domain. A total of 55 items were identified as satisfactory by the judges. The second part of this study was to compare the content validity analytical methods. It was concluded that the percentage agreement, the content validity index (CVI), and the content validity coefficients (VIK) were the best methods to use in selecting the satisfactory items. This research aims to bring more attention to the importance of psychometric properties in measures for the Autism Spectrum Disorder field. It also hope to shed some light on which content validity analyses would best be used under certain circumstances. Limitations of study and future directions were also discussed.

This research addresses the lack of an existing psychometrically sound Aspergers Syndrome self-screening instrument for adults. Initial instrument development procedures were carried out by creating an item pool using existing Asperger measures. Items were rewritten following common item writing rules suggested by several researchers as reference. Five new domains were created and the items were re-categorized. Expert panel of nine judges specialized in Psychometrics, ASD, School Psychology, and Speech-Language Pathology were asked to rate the relevancy of items to their domains in order to obtain evidence of content validity. These experts were chosen because of their relatedness to Aspergers Syndrome and their expertise in instrument development. First, the quality of the judges ratings were examined to identify any aberrant judges. Ratings were then analyzed using the remaining six judges using three descriptive and three quantitative methods to examine the representativeness and relevancy of each item to their domain. A total of 55 items were identified as satisfactory by the judges. The second part of this study was to compare the content validity analytical methods. It was concluded that the percentage agreement, the content validity index (CVI), and the content validity coefficients (VIK) were the best methods to use in selecting the satisfactory items. This research aims to bring more attention to the importance of psychometric properties in measures for the Autism Spectrum Disorder field. It also hope to shed some light on which content validity analyses would best be used under certain circumstances. Limitations of study and future directions were also discussed.

Thesis (M.S.)--Eastern Illinois University, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 80-86).

Thesis (M.S.)--Mississippi State University. Department of Psychology. / Title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references.

Using qualitative methods, this study is about the attitudes and daily practices of parents who genuinely want the best for their children who have been diagnosed with autism. The study examined the everyday realities of living with autism from a parent's perspective. The purpose of this study was to describe the range of specific behaviors, practices, attitudes, and ways of being that families adopt when they engage in the world of autism. Three families were interviewed in these case studies. A content analysis of the interviews identified five thematic clusters that are described and examined in close detail. The five thematic clusters include (1) managing the diagnostic process, (2) child's behavior and educational needs, (3) impact on parent's well-being, (4) impact on the family as a whole, and (5) full integration into mainstream society. These themes were further categorized according to the "challenges" facing the families and the specific "strategies" families used to face these challenges. Parents shared their stories with the researcher with the hopes that their life experiences could be beneficial to other families facing the same challenges as they navigate complex educational, health, and social systems. The research presents a set of recommendations that were embedded in the participants' stories. These recommendations represent advice from the parents in the study to other parents with children diagnosed with autism. Their recommendations are based on what the participants have learned as they raised their own child with autism.

Depression is among the most prevalent comorbid conditions in children with Asperger’s Syndrome. Little research has examined the variables that may contribute to depression among such children. Children with Asperger’s show social skill deficits and are often subjected to peer victimization, including isolation and teasing by their peers. It is hypothesized that peer victimization experienced by children with Asperger’s will, in part, explain their self-perceived social competence. It is also hypothesized that self-perceived social competence and peer victimization will help explain depression among such children. Multiple regression will be used to examine these presumed effects. / text

Asperger’s was eliminated as a distinct diagnosis in the DSM-5. While controversy lingers over the assimilation of Asperger’s into autism spectrum disorder, my study explores the experience of stigma through interviews with four adults with Asperger’s and two with high functioning autism. I examine the phenomenology of autistic stigma, stigma management, and how stigma is impacted by diagnosis. The results provide an understanding of stigma as it is experienced by individuals who, in the words of one participant, suffer from a “relationship disability.” The term ASHFA evolves during the write-up to become more than an acronym for Asperger’s/high functioning autism; it comes to represent a way of being present in the world that transcends diagnosis. A relational methodology derived from Gadamer’s hermeneutics and Merleau-Ponty’s phenomenology provides a philosophical framework for the project and also guides ethical engagement during the study. Methods used in the data analysis are drawn from constructivist grounded theory. The report itself may contain clues into ASHFA because I, the organizing participant, am also diagnosed with Asperger’s. I attempt to make sense of the paradoxical conclusion that diagnosis can provide a therapeutic explanation for autistic difference even as medicalization disempowers us as a validating narrative / Graduate / 0452 / 0422 / canadagates@gmail.com

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