Despite the rising prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD), interventions for the adult population, most of whom do not achieve independent living, are limited (Seltzer, Shattuck, Abbeduto, and Greenberg, 2004). Additionally, many individuals with ASD experience impaired emotion regulation (ER), which is thought to contribute to higher rates of psychiatric comorbidities among adults with ASD as well as indirect effects upon adaptive functioning, interpersonal relationships, and vocational status ( Mazefsky et al., 2013; Samson, Huber, and Gross, 2012). The primary purpose of the current study was to investigate the initial feasibility and efficacy of an adapted mindfulness-based individual therapy for adults with ASD to target ER difficulties, and evaluate ER as a potential change process. Initial feasibility of mindfulness-based approaches among adults with ASD was supported by acceptable treatment fidelity and participant satisfaction ratings. Efficacy of the intervention was partially supported; four of the participants demonstrated significant improvements in impulse control, access to ER strategies, and emotional acceptance, and two of the participants evidenced significant decreases in emotional symptom distress. Analysis of ER as a potential change process found significant improvement for four participants, but slopes demonstrated that improvement initiated before treatment, a confound for determination of change processes. Further research is recommended, including additional timepoints, a clinical cutoff-derived sample, and further understanding of the role of self-regulatory deficits for individuals with ASD. / Ph. D.

Background. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by deficits in social interaction, communication, and restricted and repetitive behaviors (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Given the heterogeneity of ASD it is important to understand individual differences within the disorder that are related to cognitive and language development, and how such differences may be related to differences in caregiver behavior or aspects of the social environment. Joint attention is an important component of early social communication and is considered to be a “core deficit” of ASD (Kasari, Freeman, Paparella, Wong, Kwon, & Gulsrud, 2005). Individual differences in joint attention during infancy have been shown to relate to language and cognitive development (Mundy, Block, Delgado, Pomares, Van Hecke, & Parlade, 2007; Nichols, Martin, & Fox, 2005). Therefore, joint attention serves an essential role in the study of child behavior within ASD across development. The present study consists of two manuscripts that explored how joint attention in children with ASD related to sensory responsiveness and social competence (Study 1), and how child joint attention related to mother attention and contextual factors (Study 2). Specifically, Study 1 investigated relations among children's sensory responses, dyadic orienting, joint attention, and their subsequent social competence with peers. Participants were 38 children (18 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and 20 developmentally matched children with typical development) between the ages of 2.75 and 6.5 years. Observational coding was conducted to assess children's joint attention and dyadic orienting in a structured social communication task. Children's sensory responses and social competence were measured with parent report. Group differences were observed in children's joint attention, sensory responses, multisensory dyadic orienting, and social competence, with the ASD group showing significantly greater social impairment and sensory responses compared with their typical peers. Atypical sensory responses were negatively associated with individual differences on social competence subscales. Interaction effects were observed between diagnostic group and sensory responses with diagnostic group moderating the relation between sensory responses and both joint attention and social competence abilities. Study 2 investigated relations between child joint attention and mother attention during three social contexts (competing demands, teaching, and free play) among 44 children with ASD between the ages of 2.5 and 5.6 years, and their mothers. Observational coding was conducted to assess children’s joint attention and mother’s dyadic orienting. Children’s expressive and receptive language was measured by teacher report. The rate of children’s joint attention, and mothers’ dyadic orienting differed depending on the context of their interaction. Children’s joint attention, expressive and receptive language, age, and ASD severity, and mother dyadic orienting were related, and these relations differed by context. Child initiating joint attention (IJA) was also related to mother attention, and this relation was moderated by the child’s expressive and receptive language. A temporal contingency was revealed for the association between child IJA and mother attention with a bi-directional association such that child IJA predicted subsequent mother attention, and mother attention predicted subsequent child IJA. When the sample was split by children’s language ability (i.e., minimally-verbal and verbal groups) there was a group by receptive language, and a group by expressive language interaction on the contingency between child IJA and subsequent mother attention. Conclusion. The results from study 1 and study 2 suggest that individual differences in children with ASD, including their sensory responses and social competence, as well as mother attention and contextual factors are related to children’s joint attention. When addressing theory and interventions for children with ASD, it is important to consider children’s language and sensory sensitivities, the demands of the interactive context, and factors related to mother attention and approach to her child.

The low physical activity levels of children today are a cause for serious concern. When examining certain populations of children, such as children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), there is a possibility of even lower overall physical activity levels. However, when exploring the current literature examining the physical activity levels of children with ASD compared to children without ASD there were conflicting results. Some studies indicate that the physical activity levels between children with ASD and children without ASD are similar. Others indicate that children with ASD were less active than their counterparts. Although many of the previous studies employed sound protocol designs including using objective measures for physical activity, these studies did not appropriately match the groups. A child's environment is one of the determining factors of their overall physical activity levels. Current literature indicates that parents have a significant influence on the physical activity levels of their children. In order to accurately compare the levels of physical activity between children with ASD and without ASD, using appropriate matching groups is crucial. The purpose of this study was to examine the current physical activity levels of children with ASD by matching groups based on similar environments and parental influences. A total of 16 children (8 pairs of siblings) participated in this study. Physical activity levels were examined by the activity counts using accelerometers, evaluating time spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA), and determining if children with ASD met the physical activity recommendations more or less than their siblings. Results indicate no difference in daily physical activity levels and time spent in MVPA were found between siblings. A total of 5 of the 16 children met the recommended amount of physical activity. Only 3 out of the 8 children with ASD met the recommended amount of physical activity. This stresses their time spent in MVPA should be an area of concern for all children and interventions should attempt to increase their MVPA early on. In conclusion, children with ASD were no less active than children without disabilities; however the children are not meeting the current physical activity recommendations. This study also suggests that for children with ASD, it may not be the condition that limits their physical activity, but instead the environmental factors may influence their activity levels. / Graduation date: 2013

Thesis PlanA (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis(Ph.D.(Nursing Science)) -- University of Limpopo, 2021 / Families with ASD children who have little support from a partner, friends, community and health care professionals report increased depression and lower life satisfaction compared to families with a good deal of social support. Social support may be a resource to boost an individual’s ability to overcome the negative consequences of stressors related to parenting a child with ASD.The study explored and described the experiences of families and teachers regarding support of families with ASD children, then developed and validated a social support model for families of children with ASD in the Gauteng and Limpopo provinces of South Africa.The method was qualitative, explorative, descriptive, contextual design employing a phenomenological approach and theory-generating study. Individual semi-structured and focus group interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. Eight steps of Tesch’s inductive, descriptive open coding technique by Creswell were used followed by independent coding. Purposive sampling recruited 37 participants from the selected special schools of Gauteng and Limpopo Provinces. Trustworthiness criteria adhered to were credibility, dependability, transferability, and confirmability. Ethical clearance was sought from the University of Limpopo. The findings showed that there is a lack of social support for families with ASD children. These include difficulties in managing children’s patterns of behaviour and communication skills, severe stress related to having a child with ASD, knowledge deficiencies associated with ASD, the burden of caring, financial constraints, lack of material and human resources within the special schools, overcrowding of ASD learners, lack of a formal curriculum, lack of schools for autistic children in the Limpopo Province, poor infrastructure, and poor school management support.The study addressed the complex needs of ASD children and recommended that families should be assisted to build their capacity to care for, and protect their ASD children. A social support model was developed to serve as a reference framework for professional nurses in different spheres of health care and education, to promote a supportive environment for families with ASD children

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Motor deficits in children who are diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have started to become recognized as an area of concern. The purpose of this study was to examine practices of board-certified music therapists who address motor goals of children with ASD. A total of 168 current board certified music therapists completed an 18-item online survey regarding music therapy practices with children who have ASD, particularly the frequency with which they address motor goals and specific goals and interventions. Respondents reported addressing motor goals with children who have ASD more frequently than suggested by previous research. Motor goals most commonly addressed include imitation, upper limb coordination, hand/eye coordination, compliance, and praxis skills. The most common interventions used to address motor goals were instrument play, movement activities, dancing, using manipulatives, and task-oriented music games. Using information provided from the study, music therapists will be better equipped in helping children with ASD who have motor deficits by providing a list of commonly used interventions and which specific motor goals they are used most commonly with.

Imitation enables social communication and is said to be deficient in people with autism. Yet little research has been done into what differentiates poor from good imitators. This project employed novel quantifiable methods of testing manual and facial imitation to determine how ability as well as empathy (which also enables social interaction) correlate with brain activation using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI). Manual imitation was tested (in- and outside the MRI-scanner) by asking participants to copy model drawings using a touchscreen that captured their kinematic data. Facial imitation was tested by asking people to copy composite facial expressions and blind-scoring the resulting imitation attempts. First, 28 adults were tested to establish what brain areas enable better imitation and how these relate to empathic abilities. Then, 25 young people with autism and 23 matched controls were tested to see how purported group differences in imitation related to brain activation patterns across and within groups. Results revealed that manual imitation ability correlated with increased activation in different brain areas than facial imitation ability. There was only one area of significant overlap, between facial imitation ability and empathy. Young people with autism were found to be impaired on facial imitation, empathy and some aspects of manual imitation. Nevertheless, fMRI results indicated that ability and age differences played a more important role than autism diagnosis in regulating what brain areas were activated during imitation. Only for the facial imitation task did autistic participants appear to use a different neural mechanism, but this was still mediated by ability. Overall, this methodologically innovative project shows that investigating individual differences in imitation ability, regardless of a diagnosis of autism, can shed more light on what neural mechanisms are crucial for imitation.