autism

Question 1

what is autism?

Answer 1

a developmental disorder that lasts for a lifetime of the idividual, effects interactions with others
- it is considered as a spectrum disorder

Question 2

how can weak central coherence cause it?

Answer 2

this is where an individual may have an imbalance of intergrating information at different levels
- a child may not be able to recall a full story but they will understand the full gist of it but children with autism do not have this ability

Question 3

how can environmental factors cause it?

Answer 3

person born with vulnerability to autism and develops if exposed to specific triggers
- such as being born prematurely
- being exposed to sodium valproate during pregnancy

Question 4

how can neurological factors cause it?

Answer 4

connections between the cerebral cortex, limbic system and amygdala in the brain are connected in a way that allows for overstimulation or over connection
- this can contribute to the experiences of extreme emotions or hypersensitivity often observed in autistic children

Question 5

what are the two categories of symptoms?

Answer 5

• social communication difficulties
• restricted and repetitive behaviours

Question 6

what are social communication difficulties?

Answer 6

• social-emotional reciprocity deficits
• nonverbal communication deficits
• problems developing/maintaining relationships

Question 7

what are restricted and repetitive behaviours?

Answer 7

• repetitive behaviours
• routines and rituals
• unusual reactions to sensory input

Question 8

what are socio-emotional reciprocity deficits?

Answer 8

tend not to use communication to share their interests/emotions
- they don’t initiate interactions or respond to others’ attempts to do so

Question 9

what are nonverbal communication deficits?

Answer 9

• use nonverbal signs such as eye contact and social smiling inappropriately
• their facial expressions can be limited or exaggerated
• gestures such as pointing may be used in the wrong context
• mismatch between facial expressions and tone of voice

Question 10

what are problems developing/maintaining relationships?

Answer 10

• they are unaware of social conventions or norms so they can find it hard to change their behaviour to suit the context
• do not understand that people have minds, so they struggle to see the world from someone elses perspective

Question 11

what are repetitive behaviours?

Answer 11

may use language unusually
- repeating what they have just heard
- physical movements can also become repetitive, ranging from constant hand gestures such as flicking

Question 12

what are routines and rituals?

Answer 12

many people might carry out a behaviour in step by step sequence with little or no variation
- they may use verbal rituals, insiting other people use words in a set pattern

Question 13

what are the unusual reactions to sensory input?

Answer 13

• some people find touch aversive so try to avoid it e.g. brushing teeth
• they may be obsessively interested in the movements of objects e.g. opening closing