There are currently several treatments for both children and adults diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Some of them have a solid scientific basis and offer results; others, not so much, or just work with people who fit a very specific profile. On the other hand, what we do know is that effective psychological treatment of autism is evidence-based, as well as being integrative and holistic.
Autism was officially recognized in the early 1940s by Austrian psychiatrist Leo Kanner, who was already studying characteristics that often occur in autism, such as isolation, language problems, limited communication, or an obsession with environmental invariance.
- The exact definition of autism remains controversial.
- A few years ago.
- The term?Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)? It was incorporated to categorize a broader group of disorders that share clinical characteristics that define “classic” autism.
Autism affects 10 to 15 people per 10,000. When the most benign subtypes and Asperger’s syndrome are included in this statistic, prevalence increases to 57 people per 10,000.
In terms of sex, 4 out of 5 people affected are men, although women tend to have a greater intellectual disability. The latter affects 75% of people diagnosed with autism; In addition, 50% have no voice or have a language deficit.
An increasingly consensual fact is extracted from the plurality of treatment options: there is no single intervention program valid for all people with autism, nor is there a single therapeutic approach valid for the same individual at different times of development.
What is clear is that behavioral interventions are the preferred psychological treatment, all based on a behavioral analysis applied to specify that person’s needs and then modify the relevant behaviors.
The general objectives of the intervention are
In recent years, different programs with more empirical evidence have emerged, some of them are: Applied Behavioral Analysis (Loovas, 1987; Simth et al. , 2000), naturalistic behavioral intervention (Koegel et al. , 1998) and pragmatic evolutionary model ( Prinzant and Wetherby, 1998).
Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) uses scientific knowledge about learning and does so to develop pedagogical procedures for the acquisition of relevant behaviors in the social sphere.
Most people think that global behavioral interventions try to educate the individual through a set of techniques over a period of time; However, what they actually do is promote specific skills through one or more different techniques. Both types of interventions are considered equally effective.
The three basic principles of the ABA intervention model are
On the other hand, the most common elements of global interventions are:
Several studies have concluded that behavioral analysis applied as a treatment for autism shows results in the following areas:
Behavioral treatment studies show that certain variables may influence the effectiveness of treatment:
Many studies have used behavioral interventions to achieve the most basic learning conditions with more complex behaviors, such as language.
On the other hand, one of the most important discoveries in the context of behavioral intervention in autism is: the fewer disruptive behaviors (such as self-determination), the greater the possibility of learning.
In this regard, the researchers reached two conclusions
Research seeks to clarify how disruptive behaviors are maintained: by positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, or by the absence of another stimulus.
The main conclusion of the studies is that, in order to reduce disruptive behaviors, it is not effective to focus directly on stopping or reducing them, one of the most effective strategies to eliminate these behaviors is the differential reinforcement of other behaviors.
Specific interventions are based on specific techniques and focus on teaching social skills, language, reading, academic skills, etc.
Several current studies based on behavioral interventions use a more “naturalistic” approach. Development. This makes a big difference between more traditional interventions based on the ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis).
For example, the most recently developed interventions for preschoolers involve locating them in natural and socially interactive settings.
During the fun daily activities, and from the beginning of the intervention, strategies are already included in which the child directs the teaching situation.
These interventions, based on empirically proven methods, are derived from the principles of behavioral learning and developmental sciences.
Naturalistic teaching was born in response to the difficulties of more traditional intervention methods based on discrete attempts to generalize learning.
All approaches (incidental education, fundamental response training, community teaching, natural language teaching, etc. ) have been developed with the aim of achieving a more naturalistic method, thus seeking to improve the development of language and communication of autistic children.
These interventions are based, in part, on the interactive principles and processes that arise from development models, ABA and the importance of parent-child interaction.
This model is characterized by an eminently pragmatic and social approach to development, highlighting the need to focus on preverbal and verbal language, as well as functional communication skills.
In addition, it strives to reduce the difficulties associated with imitation, in addition to the peculiarities of sensory processing.
It also highlights the natural socio-pragmatic context, reiterates family involvement and recommends the inclusion of couples’ work.
Building intentionality, re-release, shared care and communicative initiation skills are responsible for all of this, children can expand their repertoire of functions with different instruments in a natural context.