ASD and Development Patricia Rakovic

Differences in language development in the child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) a. Joint attention b. Verbal development c. Non-verbal language development d. Theory of mind e. Pro-social communication f. Conversational skills g. Early differences in development in a child with ASD h. Differences in brain development i. Dyspraxia j. Theory of mind difficulties k. How the combination of verbal, non-verbal communication and motor planning difficulties impacts social communication. How to take a language sample

Autism Spectrum Disorders Problems with socialization Problems with communication Unusual behaviors

It’s more than height and weight Observing how children play, learn, speak and act Different areas of development – Social, communication, cognitive, gross motor, fine motor, adaptive Monitoring milestones can offer early signs of delay including signs of autism spectrum disorders Child Development

Accurate diagnosis of autism required significant knowledge of typical development in the following areas: social, communication, cognitive skills, and play skills. Understanding developmental profiles: must know what is typical for development and atypical for development at any age. Autism is a Developmental Disorder

Methodological Approaches to Studying Emergence of Autism Retrospective studies of affected children – Parental report – Video diaries analysis Prospective studies of infant siblings at risk for ASD – Recurrence risk for autism: 5-10% – High risk for other developmental problems: Language or cognitive delays Broader Autism Phenotype, BAP

Potential Areas of Dysfunction in the 1 st Year 1.Typical Development –0 to 3 months: Sensitivity to and preference for face-like stimuli and speech-like sound –3 to 6 months: Emergence of dyadic social interactions –6 to 9 months: Development of face processing skills (identity, affect, gender) Response to name Anticipatory social games –9 to 12 months: Social monitoring and imitation Social referencing Joint attention 2. Many skills affected in toddlers with ASD emerge typically in the first year

Patterns of Onset Early onset (1 st year): –“Inborn autistic disturbances of affective contact” (Kanner, 1943) Later onset (2 nd year): –Regression (15-27% of cases) (Eisenberg & Kanner, 1955; Dawson et al., 2006; Landa et al., 2007) –Plateau (Ozonoff et al., 2008; Hansen et al., 2008)

Age of Onset: Parental Perception Average age at first concern: – 15 months (SD=6.5) Primary concerns: – Social difficulties – Speech delays Why such a variability? Chawarska, Paul, Klin et al., 2007, JADD.

Recent study by CDC indicated most children with an ASD diagnosis had signs of a developmental problem before the age of 3, but average age of diagnosis was 5 years. Parental Concerns (Wiggins, Baio, Rice, 2006)

Early Development Babies start communicating and relating to other people at birth Continued social-emotional development is key to forming strong relationships and continued learning