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Running head: MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELING 1
MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELING 7
Dissertation Assignment
LaQuisha Neal
Advanced Scholarly Inquiry CES8130
Capella University
08-22-20
Topic: Mental Health Counseling: Counseling Education Supervision (CES) working with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Background of the Study
Autism Spectrum disorder is basically a developmental disorder that generates a negative impact on the behavior and communication skills of individuals. It is characterized by a repetitive and limited pattern of communication and behavior (Hobson, 2019). Autism spectrum disorder can occur at any age, but most of the time they appear in the early years of life that is why it is characterized as a developmental disorder and is mostly found in young children (Connor et al., 2020). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) has mentioned several symptoms associated with the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) which includes repetitive behaviors and restricted interests, difficulty in interaction and communication in social gatherings, and several symptoms which directly impact the ability of children to work correctly in their school and professional life later (Ballard et al., 2016). There are several types with different intensity of the Autism Spectrum disorder and it is also considered a lifelong disease but it can be improved through treatment and supervision via mental health counseling. Due to the wide occurrence of illness, the American Academy of Pediatrics has put forward the recommendation of screening all children for Autism Spectrum disorders (Neo & Flaherty, 2018).
Children suffering from Autism Spectrum disorder avoid eye contact and are unresponsive to different facial and verbal expressions (Tustin, 2018). With growing age, there is extreme inflexibility in their patterns and routines, which leads to the lack of concern and empathy along with the stereotypical language and phrase uses. Emotional deregulation and aggression are common symptoms among the school going kids suffering from Autism Spectrum disorder. All other senses are found to be hypersensitive among such children (Gliga et al., 2015). The critical aspect is to understand thoroughly the emotions and feelings of children suffering from Autism Spectrum disorder because they find it hard to express themselves in the real sense (Kurz, 2018). The extreme emotions which they experience are the curiosity and fear of new experiences and the social environment around them. The appropriate stimulus around them can help them in calming themselves and reduce the element of fear and replace it with curiosity.
The exact causes of the Autism Spectrum disorder are yet to found, but it has been noted that counselors can help children suffering from this disease. Mental health counselors and supervisors can play their role in helping the children in conducting their daily activities (Kurz, 2018). There are several objects of CES and one of the most significant aspects is to debunk the misperceptions and myths that are associated with Autism Spectrum disorder. Myths and misconceptions in society leave a mark on the mind of individuals, including the ones who are aspiring counselors; therefore, the supervisors need to work on this aspect of the counseling profession (Sanz-Cervera et al., 2017). The second step is to identify and pinpoint the wants and needs of the children having Autism Spectrum disorder because it can vary from person to person. The third step is to identify and find the strengthening attributes of the children and help them excel in it. For example, some children with Autism Spectrum disorder are great artists and painters and find it difficult to concentrate on the words. The fourth important step is to understand the struggles that children encounter and the struggles of their families to offer them support and provide them with appropriate approaches to deal with their children (Tint et al., 2017).
Mental health counseling improves the response of children in fulfilling their responsibilities and independence in completing their tasks. Several methods and ways are employed by counselors who help in the treatment of the Autism Spectrum disorders, which revolve around neuropsychobiology and psychological treatments and care (Anderberg et al., 2017). The impact of promoting mental health among children, along with considering the mental health of children and its assessment has proven to be beneficial for their treatment. At the same time, it helps the parents of children with Autism Spectrum disorders (Catalano et al., 2018). In such programs, parents are given enough resources to deal with it financially, physically, and emotionally (Vogan et al., 2017). Different approaches have been used by the Counseling Education Supervisors to understand the response and perception of children with Autism Spectrum disorder which include video modeling. It has been found to be effective in improving the social skills of children and their educational outcomes. Video modeling is considered to be effective in providing better results clinically (Hein, 2019). It is an evidence-based strategy that is found to be associated with the positive behavior among the children with Autism and it also enhances their skills acquisition traits. Video is shown to the individuals where people are finishing and executing their work. The aim is to imitate those skills.
The Need for Study
In order to develop an intervention or treatment plan for the children suffering from Autism Spectrum disorders, it is essential to measure their adaptive behavior, academic achievement, developmental history, cognitive capacity, motor skills, behavioral patterns, emotional patterns, sensory patterns, speech, and language abilities and majorly social behavior and capacity. There is quite a lot for the Counseling Education Supervision team to work on for the preparation of people who can work effectively with the children who are suffering from Autism Spectrum disorders (Brown et al., 2016). Therefore, it is necessary to conduct further research on the approaches or the intersection of methods that can effectively lead to an improvement in their developmental and behavioral outcomes. The area selected for this research is to identify the effectiveness of video modeling in the children suffering from Autism Spectrum disorders.
The unique aspect of the children suffering from Autism Spectrum disorders is a fact that they respond differently to different situations which also calls for the evaluation of their functional behavior. After getting all the assessments in different areas of life, it is necessary to build up complete puzzles from different pieces and then just the behavioral interventions and specific therapies (Jackson et al., 2018). It is essential for Counseling Education Supervision to work in a manner that equips counseling mentors to thoroughly understand the needs of different individuals (Gallo et al., 2016).
Counselors do not only need to assist the child with Autism Spectrum disorders but also to work with their families to educate and familiarize them with different symptoms and approaches to tackle those symptoms (Karst et al., 2015). Siblings, along with parents, with a better understanding of symptoms, can generate a positive outcome for the children with Autism Spectrum disorders because it can help in increasing their involvement and inclusion in different activities (Kasari et al., 2015). It is also necessary to assign psychological experts in some cases to the patients as well. However, due to the lack of awareness about the real causes of the disease, sometimes strategies and approaches do not work well together, which poses a demand to develop, a more comprehensive and useful plan (Crane et al., 2019).
Purpose of the Study
CES provides expertise in several areas including Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling, Clinical Mental Health Counseling, and School Counseling, etc. According to the American Counseling Association, CES helps counselors to completely understand the needs and requirements of the treatment and intervention for Autism Spectrum disorder (Chen et al., 2015). Autism Spectrum disorders are a complex neurological disorder and that is why it is necessary to approach the problem with different approaches and directions. The implementation of a combination of different therapies and approaches has been found to be effective for that purpose.
In this dissertation, the impact and implementation of Video Modeling in the children suffering from Autism Spectrum disorders for treatment and development of intervention strategies for Autism Spectrum disorders will be discussed and analyzed in detail through the special lens of the Counseling Education Supervision programs. They are proven to be necessary for generating positive outcomes for people with Autism Spectrum disorders.
References
Jackson, S. L., Hart, L., Brown, J. T., & Volkmar, F. R. (2018). Brief report: Self-reported academic, social, and mental health experiences of post-secondary students with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 48(3), 643-650.
Crane, L., Adams, F., Harper, G., Welch, J., & Pellicano, E. (2019). ‘Something needs to change’: mental health experiences of young autistic adults in England. Autism, 23(2), 477-493.
Vogan, V., Lake, J. K., Tint, A., Weiss, J. A., & Lunsky, Y. (2017). Tracking health care service use and the experiences of adults with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disability: A longitudinal study of service rates, barriers and satisfaction. Disability and Health Journal, 10(2), 264-270.
Catalano, D., Holloway, L., & Mpofu, E. (2018). Mental health interventions for parent carers of children with autistic spectrum disorder: Practice guidelines from a critical interpretive synthesis (CIS) systematic review. International journal of environmental research and public health, 15(2), 341.
Tint, A., Weiss, J. A., & Lunsky, Y. (2017). Identifying the clinical needs and patterns of health service use of adolescent girls and women with autism spectrum disorder. Autism Research, 10(9), 1558-1566.
Kurz, I. G. (2018). Families with children diagnosed with autism: Implications for counselors. The Family Journal, 26(4), 455-461.
Neo, W. X., & Flaherty, G. T. (2018). Autism spectrum disorder and international travel. International Journal of Travel Medicine and Global Health, 7(1), 1-3.
Anderberg, E., Cox, J. C., Neeley Tass, E. S., Erekson, D. M., Gabrielsen, T. P., Warren, J. S., ... & South, M. (2017). Sticking with it: Psychotherapy outcomes for adults with autism spectrum disorder in a university counseling center setting. Autism Research, 10(12), 2048-2055.
Brown, J. T., Meeks, L., & Rigler, M. (2016). Mental health concerns of students on the autism spectrum. New Directions for Student Services, 2016(156), 31-40.
Ballard, J., Crane, D. R., Harper, J. M., Fawcett, D., & Sandberg, J. (2016). Mental health service utilization in autism spectrum disorders. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 23, 84-93.
Chen, J. L., Leader, G., Sung, C., & Leahy, M. (2015). Trends in employment for individuals with autism spectrum disorder: A review of the research literature. Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 2(2), 115-127.
Kasari, C., Gulsrud, A., Paparella, T., Hellemann, G., & Berry, K. (2015). Randomized comparative efficacy study of parent-mediated interventions for toddlers with autism. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 83(3), 554.
Connor, A., Sung, C., Strain, A., Zeng, S., & Fabrizi, S. (2020). Building skills, confidence, and wellness: Psychosocial effects of soft skills training for young adults with autism. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 50(6), 2064-2076.
Karst, J. S., Van Hecke, A. V., Carson, A. M., Stevens, S., Schohl, K., & Dolan, B. (2015). Parent and family outcomes of PEERS: A social skills intervention for adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 45(3), 752-765.
Hobson, R. P. (2019). Autism and the development of mind. Routledge.
Tustin, F. (2018). Autism and childhood psychosis. Routledge.
Gallo, L. L., Self, T., & Raush, M. A. (2016). School Counselors’ Experiences With Empowerment and Students on the Autism Spectrum: A Qualitative Study. Journal of Child and Adolescent Counseling, 2(2), 159-174.
Gliga, T., Bedford, R., Charman, T., Johnson, M. H., Baron-Cohen, S., Bolton, P., ... & Gammer, I. (2015). Enhanced visual search in infancy predicts emerging autism symptoms. Current Biology, 25(13), 1727-1730.
Sanz-Cervera, P., Fernández-Andrés, M. I., Pastor-Cerezuela, G., & Tárraga-Mínguez, R. (2017). Pre-service teachers’ knowledge, misconceptions and gaps about autism spectrum disorder. Teacher Education and Special Education, 40(3), 212-224.
Hein, R., Els, J., O'Brien, K., Anasi, S., Pascuzzi, K., Blanchard, S., & Bollmann, E. (2019). Effectiveness of Video Modeling in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Pretest-Posttest. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 73(4_Supplement_1), 7311520422p1-7311520422p1.