Introduction and Summary

Autism Spectrum Disorder: Language Barriers and Behavioral Health

Student Name

Grand Canyon University: EDL-861

December 11, 2019

Autism Spectrum Disorder: Language Barriers and Behavioral Health

Introduction

Autism disorder is a chronic disorder that primarily impacts the behavior as well as communication. It is referred to as a spectrum condition because there is a variation in the severity together with the kind of symptoms individuals’ experience. The disorder occurs in all racial, economic as well as ethnic groups (Carr & Lord, 2016). Autism spectrum Disorder is generally classified with the following symptoms:

1. Language together with communication difficulties characterized by disordered or delayed speech.

2. Restrictive fixed as well as repetitive behavior; this can include echolalia (repetition of words), odd behaviors or arranging items such as toys in a hasty manner.

3. Abnormal symptoms and reciprocal social engagements that can be found in the inability to participate in team play, poor maintenance of eye contact, or abnormal responses.

ASD is referred to as a developmental condition because its symptoms usually appear in first 2 years of an individual’s life. Individuals with this particular disorder may have different degrees of challenges requiring written and spoken language together, but the symptoms associated with social impairments are generally present, differentiating autism spectrum condition from the other developmental disorders (Carr & Lord, 2016). Early diagnosis, intervention and involvement of the parents will enhance the prognosis of Autism disorder.

This literature review paper will conduct an evaluation as well as a review on 6 articles that have extensively explained the following two major themes in the research study: 1) language barriers with Autism spectrum condition, together with 2) behavioral health. This thesis will consider the following information concerning every one of the 6 articles; the research questions, the sample population, research methodology, existing gaps as well as the main findings and results. Further the paper will explore three articles on various sub-themes that are found under the two main themes.

Language Barriers

Patricia and Nickola (2012) in their article they wrote known as “Language and communication in Autism: An integrated view” explains that individuals with the autism disorder encounter several difficulties in development. The authors have addressed the challenges of language together with communication; the two are closely related but are not identical difficulties. The article explains that the two phenomena are well understood as being complementary features of integrated social system. A key objective of the article was to offer data and information regarding language barriers as well as the communication difficulties related with ASD for clinicians together with physicians who especially work with children with autism. It has been organized to offer answers based on available evidence to questions regarding the role of language as well as communication across the key deficits of the disorder, how to integrate evaluations and interventions, as well as strategies for supporting families to enhance the language development of the children.

According to the article, the role of language is evident as verbal individuals with autism disorder apply language in several ways that are stereotyped, preservative, restricted and ritualized. Language barriers interferes with the reciprocal way of social interactions as well as communication, this will eventually complicate the ability of a person with autism condition to get fully involved in bilateral conversations and discourse required during social interactions and is key in supporting the creation of meaningful relationships (Patricia & Nickola, 2012). Further, the authors have summarized several results and findings from the National Standards project of the ASD center, which found eleven types of treatment for this disorder, eight of which attempts to solve the challenge of language as well as communication barriers. The article has included both naturalistic developmental together with contemporary behavioral methodologies.

Mody and Belliveau (2013) explains in the article “Speech and Language Impairments in Autism” that the failing to create language is amongst the first sign of autism disorder. They also argue that the ability to speak before 5years of age is an important predictor for better results in the disorder. The article has composed and reviewed the existing literature on preverbal as well as verbal indicators of development in language as the basis for assessing anomalies in the brain as well as behaviors associated with language together with speech in ASD. The main findings from the study will be able to relate the interference between language and communication to the autism disorder, and hence promising interventions to address the challenge. This article recommends directing more emphasis on the development of neurophenotypes in order to help in the understanding of autism as well as helping individuals with the condition through the provisions of targets for pharmacological as well as behavioral interventions. According to Vanderbilt and Amant (2017) in their articles published in the “Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders”, there are ethnic as well a racial disparity concerning the access to healthcare in individuals with autism condition. In a sample population of 152 kids with autism, kids of individuals whose first means of communication is English were likely to have communication together with social objectives in their programs when compared to those whose individuals were not primarily English. The findings highlight that racial as well as ethnic backgrounds play a role in diagnosing and interventions regarding autism disorder.

Expressive communication in children with ASD

Children with expressive communication disorder experience challenges in expressing and relaying information in writing, gesture, and speech or sign communication (Dammeyer & Nielson, 2015). Most children with ASD are late in achieving typical language steps in the first 3 years, but with time they catch up with the others. According to Sreedevi (2015), expressive communication in children with autism condition results in these children having challenges in combining words to develop right sentences together with phrases. They produce shorter sentences when compared to their peers of the same age and their vocabulary is only basic. Luyster and Kadlec (2008) suggests expressive communication may begin as early as birth and the deficits start to appear as infants grow and develop. It is more noticeable when they are compared to same age peers. Another contribution to expressive communication disorder may be due to a medical diagnosis or a traumatic injury.

Receptive communication in children with ASD

Receptive communication disorder in children with autism involves having children with expressive communication disorder experience challenges in expressing and relaying information in writing, gesture, and speech or sign communication. The children may have the can read or hear the words, but fail to connect the specific words to a meaning (Mitchel & Brian, 2006). Children with this disorder can tune out when in the middle of conversing because what they are getting from the conversation has no meaning to them. They have challenges following instructions when spoken to them (Wetherby, 2012). Receptive communication can affect the ability of the child to communicate, play, and learn with their peers (Prizant & Wetherby, 2000). It is very important for the child to get treatment as soon as possible.

Mixed expressive- receptive communication in children with ASD

According to Rutter (2012), mixed expressive-receptive communication disorder in children involves challenges in both applying spoken language and understanding. These children experience challenges in expressing and relaying information as well as challenges in expressing and relaying information in speech and writing (Rogers & Bryson, 2005). Children with autism encounter these challenges in communication, which eventually impact both their academic and social growth and development (Chawarska & Klin, 2007).

Behavioral Health

Curtin, Anderson and Bandini (2010) states in the article that based on the represented data in the US, most individuals with autism conditions have a greater prevalence of having obesity when compared to the overall number and this can be attributed to the behavioral health. Despite many of the existing studies conducted on obesity, only a few researches assess the state of weight among children with autism disorder. Research conducted explains the different prevalence of obesity in individuals with autism disorders were higher when compared to the entire population. The purpose of the research was to apply statistics from the NSCH in order to analyze how the issue of individuals being obese is related with the disorder. The data for the study was gathered between January in 2003 to July in 2004 through the application of a CATI application. Digit-calling was used to collect samples, and the sample population of residential homes from fifty regions had been identified. The participants were parents or guardians of the children who were well aware of the children and their health. The sample consisted of 103,243 children ages between zero and seventeen years. The gap in the research included its failure to comprehensively analyze the relation between the behavioral health and autism disorder.

Yorke and Weston (2018) systematically identified and summarized the available research regarding the association between additional behavior health in children with ASD, and mental health issues and stress in their parents. A sample of 61 research studies was used in the analysis. Some variables for moderation by measurements were found such as in mean, variation and deviation. The findings demonstrated shared relations between severity of autism as well as the parenting perception of the parents. This study failed to focus on all the factors involved in the relation in a more hypothesis-driven manner, basing on evidence from the current literature. Fodstad (2019), establishes that people with the disorder are at greater risk of getting comorbid conditions related with the secondary psychiatric or health. The purpose of the article was to help in collecting what was then referred to as the field of mental condition together with wellness in individuals of autism condition. The sample for the study included 6 reliable reviews that were comprehensive on mental health, nuances and psychopathology. This study demonstrates an existing gap regarding the limited number of reviews that were used for the sample.

Applied behavior analysis

Raches, Tomlin and Pratt (2016) focused on the impacts of early interventions in autism through the integration of applied behavior evaluation as well as infant childhood mental wellness. The article used a sample of data from the National Autism Center to indicate the effectiveness of the summation strategies that is anchored on the law of conditioning in treatment of children with autism disorder (National Autism Center, 2009). According to Ramsey, Hearly & Pullen (2016) they strongly support the use of ABA strategies for people with the disorder in regions of evaluations as well as treatment of behavior problems based on the evidence collected by the article. However, there is a gap in the amount of evidence for ABA in specific areas such as psychiatric conditions as well as symptoms about the status of autism. Adams, Young and Keen (2016) argues that while applied behavior assessment will continue to be applied in main deficit parts, adaptations should be made to ascertain that reoccurring as well as interfering situations are solved.

Disruptive behavior clinic for ASD

Smith and Bearss (2017) carried out a six-month randomized study on parenting training and behavior clinic in over 180 children between ages 3 to 7 years with ASD. Parent training was better than behavior clinics in reducing disruptive as well as non-compliant behaviors. The study used an inter-treat methodology as well as random effects to evaluate different variables in the study. According to Kaat and Lecavalier (2014) most children with autism shows behavioral issues like tantrums and impulsiveness. These behavioral issues pose a great challenge to the parents and requires the intervention of disruptive behavior clinics (Gadow & Azizian, 2005). The results showed that about seventy percent of people with autism condition experiences at least a single co-occuring problem.

Integration of applied behavior analysis and behavior clinic

Hallett and Lecavalier (2013) have explored in the article the anxiety in children with autism that results in disruptive re-occurrence of behavioral issues and how the early interventions of disruptive clinics together with the summation of applied behavior assessment will impact on reducing the rate of such behavioral reoccurring. The article considered several functions to determine the effectiveness of the integration interventions. Further, the findings of the article demonstrate most people with children with disruptive autism behaviors applies only a single behavioral intervention, but with the integration of both the two offers promising outcomes for the people. The existing gap in this study was the failure to relate this integrated intervention with parental stress as well as mental wellness.

Conclusion

This thesis has evaluated six research sources on two different main themes. The first three sources studied language barriers and the last three were on behavioral health. Each research article was highlighted according to the sample population, research questions, gaps, methodology as well as the findings. It is critical to know that the research articles reviewed in this paper barely exhausted the topic of discussion. The articles reviewed in this paper were chosen because of their depth and knowledge on the topic of autism disorder and their relation to behavioral health and language barrier.

References

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