Week 3a - Neurodevelopment and Autism Flashcards
Outline some sections of the brain and their roles in development?
The Brain is an APPROACH AND AVOID SYSTEM (approaches beneficial things, avoids harmful things)
Frontal Lobe - impulse control, consciousness
Left Hemisphere - language
Right Hemisphere - creativity
Amygdala and Hippocampus - empathy and fear response
What are synapses?
The connections between neurones - allows neurotransmitters to be released
Neurochemical Changes: Outline the ‘teenage brain’
Adult-like ability to reason but has a heightened need for reward –> poor at considering consequences of behaviour –> RISKY decisions made
Social Brain undergoes positive changes - grey–>white matter (romantic love programmed)
Teens 4x more likely to engage in risky behaviour if another teen present
What is Autism?
A neuro-developmental disability
What is socio-affective processing? (Theory of Mind)
Theory of Mind: ability to ATTRIBUTE MENTAL STATES TO OTHERS TO KNOW they have beliefs, desires, and intentions that are different from my own
Theory of Mind is known as COGNITIVE EMPATHY (the other major component is affective empathy)
What is “normal” development?
Most children have innate preferences for social attentiveness which allows them to develop pre-verbal social skills
The use of gestures leads to shared communication and shared perspective
The child can share in the perceptions and thoughts of those around them - to make sense of the world
What is the ‘triad of impairment’?
Impairment in areas of
- Socialisation
- Language Development
- Behaviour
Causes: Biological and Genetic
Genetics: there is 91% concordance in MZ twins
Illness: Rubella/meningitis/tuberculosis
What are the historically incorrect causes of autism?
MMR Vaccine - theory debunked (no evidence whatsoever)
Harsh Parenting - a notion of cold and rejecting parents
What are the 3 key signs of autism?
- Social Impairment
- Absent/impaired imitation
- Absent social play
- Impaired ability to make friendships
- Lack of wanting to seek comfort with others at times of distress - Language Impairment
- No developmentally appropriate mode of communication
- Absent or abnormal nonverbal communications
- Speech production issues (eg. volume)
- Lack of understanding about symbolic reasoning - Restricted Behavioural Repertoire
- Stereotyped body movements (eg. hand flaps)
- Marked distress over changes in environment
- Absence of imaginative acitvity
- Stereotyped and restricted patterns of interest
- Attachment to unusual objects
What are the goals of autism intervention and how is it ‘managed’?
Early diagnostic to determine individual factors
Early interventions to determine individual factors
Early interventions to influence development
Play therapy, speech therapy etc.
GOALS: To relieve symptoms of anxiety, frustration, and difficult behaviour
DIFFICULTIES: rigidity with routines, usual rewards not rewarding
