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ABSTRACT: This cross-sectional study seeks to (a) describe developmental correlates of sensory hyporesponsiveness to social and nonsocial stimuli, (b) determine whether hyporesponsiveness is generalized across contexts in children with autism relative to controls, and (c) test the associations between hyporesponsiveness and social communication outcomes. Three groups of children ages 11-105 months (N = 178; autism = 63, developmental delay = 47, typical development = 68) are given developmental and sensory measures including a behavioral orienting task (the Sensory Processing Assessment). Lab measures are significantly correlated with parental reports of sensory hyporesponsiveness. Censored regression models show that hyporesponsiveness decreased across groups with increasing mental age (MA). Group differences are significant but depend upon two-way interactions with MA and context (social and nonsocial). At a very young MA (e.g., 6 months), the autism group demonstrates more hyporesponsiveness to social and nonsocial stimuli (with larger effects for social) than developmental delay and typically developing groups, but at an older MA (e.g., 60 months) there are no significant differences. Hyporesponsiveness to social and nonsocial stimuli predicts lower levels of joint attention and language in children with autism. Generalized processes in attention disengagement and behavioral orienting may have relevance for identifying early risk factors of autism and for facilitating learning across contexts to support the development of joint attention and language.
Development and Psychopathology 05/2013; 25(2):307-20. · 4.40 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Data from young, initially nonverbal children with ASD indicate that manual motor and oral motor imitation performance at study entry correlate significantly with consonant inventories 8 months later. This association is not fully explained by (1) entry oral motor skills reflected in eating behaviors, and/or by (2) entry attention to people. The association of motor imitation with later consonant inventories may reflect the importance of imitation as a learning strategy, and/or the role of praxis in the development of spoken language in this population.
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Convention, Atlanta, GA; 11/2012
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International Organization for Psychophysiology Congress; 09/2012
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ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVE. This study explored precursors and trajectories of extreme sensory patterns in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) compared with children with developmental delay (DD). METHOD. We conducted a retrospective analysis of home videos of 12 infants who later displayed extreme presence or absence of three sensory patterns at preschool and school age. RESULTS. In ASD, hyporesponsiveness was most evident in infancy, followed by sensory repetitions. Hyporesponsiveness appeared stable over time and also was a precursor of sensory seeking. Infants with DD had few sensory precursors. CONCLUSION. Precursors of extreme sensory features emerge early in children with ASD and appear relatively stable over time for a pattern of hyporesponsiveness but less stable for patterns of hyperresponsiveness and sensory seeking. These findings highlight the emergent nature of sensory features that may inform early identification and intervention.
The American journal of occupational therapy : official publication of the American Occupational Therapy Association. 09/2012; 66(5):e81-4.
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ABSTRACT: PURPOSE: Compare gesture use in infants with autism to infants with other developmental disabilities (DD) or typical development (TD). METHOD: Children with autism (n = 43), other DD (n = 30), and TD (n = 36) were recruited at ages 2 to 7 years. Parents provided home videotapes of children in infancy. Staff compiled video samples for two age intervals (9-12 and 15-18 months), and coded samples for frequency of social interaction (SI), behavior regulation (BR), and joint attention (JA) gestures. RESULTS: At 9-12 months, infants with autism were less likely to use JA gestures than infants with other DD or TD, and less likely to use BR gestures than infants with TD. At 15-18 months, infants with autism were less likely than infants with other DD to use SI or JA gestures, and less likely than infants with TD to use BR, SI, or JA gestures. Among infants able to use gestures, infants with autism used fewer BR gestures than those with TD at 9-12 months, and fewer JA gestures than infants with other DD or TD at 15-18 months. CONCLUSIONS: Differences in gesture use in infancy have implications for early autism screening, assessment, and intervention.
American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology 07/2012; · 2.03 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: The First Year Inventory is a parent-report measure designed to identify 12-month-old infants at risk for autism spectrum disorder. First Year Inventory taps behaviors that indicate risk in the developmental domains of sensory-regulatory and social-communication functioning. This longitudinal study is a follow-up of 699 children at 3 years of age from a community sample whose parents completed the First Year Inventory when their children were 12 months old. Parents of all 699 children completed the Social Responsiveness Scale-Preschool version and the Developmental Concerns Questionnaire to determine age 3 developmental outcomes. In addition, children deemed at risk for autism spectrum disorder based on liberal cut points on the First Year Inventory, Social Responsiveness Scale-Preschool, and/or Developmental Concerns Questionnaire were invited for in-person diagnostic evaluations. We found 9 children who had a confirmed diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder from the sample of 699. Receiver operating characteristic analyses determined that a two-domain cutoff score yielded optimal classification of children: 31% of those meeting algorithm cutoffs had autism spectrum disorder and 85% had a developmental disability or concern by age 3. These results suggest that the First Year Inventory is a promising tool for identifying 12-month-old infants who are at risk for an eventual diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder.
Autism 07/2012; · 2.27 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: This study utilized retrospective video analysis to distinguish sensory-motor patterns in infants with fragile X syndrome
(FXS) (n=11) from other infants [i.e., autism (n=11), other developmental delay (n=10), typical (n=11)] at 9–12months of age. Measures of development, autistic features, and FMRP were assessed at the time of entry into
the study. Home videos collected from families were edited and coded with previously validated procedures. Findings revealed
a pattern of sensory-motor features (e.g., repetitive leg movements, posturing, less sophistication/repetitive use of objects)
associated with FXS, and suggest these infants were most similar to the group of infants with other developmental delays,
irrespective of co-existing autistic symptoms later in life. Infant sensory-motor features in the FXS group were more predictive
of an early developmental milestone (i.e., age walking) than later, more broad, developmental outcomes, or FMRP. Implications
for early identification and differential diagnosis are discussed.
Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders 04/2012; 35(5):645-656. · 3.34 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Impaired motor coordination is prevalent in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and affects adaptive skills. Little is known about the development of motor patterns in young children with ASD between 2 and 6 years of age. The purpose of the current study was threefold: (1) to describe developmental correlates of motor coordination in children with ASD, (2) to identify the extent to which motor coordination deficits are unique to ASD by using a control group of children with other developmental disabilities (DD), and (3) to determine the association between motor coordination variables and functional fine motor skills. Twenty-four children with ASD were compared to 30 children with typical development (TD) and 11 children with DD. A precision grip task was used to quantify and analyze motor coordination. The motor coordination variables were two temporal variables (grip to load force onset latency and time to peak grip force) and two force variables (grip force at onset of load force and peak grip force). Functional motor skills were assessed using the Fine Motor Age Equivalents of the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale and the Mullen Scales of Early Learning. Mixed regression models were used for all analyses. Children with ASD presented with significant motor coordination deficits only on the two temporal variables, and these variables differentiated children with ASD from the children with TD, but not from children with DD. Fine motor functional skills had no statistically significant associations with any of the motor coordination variables. These findings suggest that subtle problems in the timing of motor actions, possibly related to maturational delays in anticipatory feed-forward mechanisms, may underlie some motor deficits reported in children with ASD, but that these issues are not unique to this population. Further research is needed to investigate how children with ASD or DD compensate for motor control deficits to establish functional skills.
Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience 01/2012; 6:122.
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Journal of Autism and Childhood Schizophrenia 01/2012; 42(1):146. · 3.06 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Young boys with autism were compared to typically developing boys on responses to nonsocial and child-directed speech (CDS) stimuli. Behavioral (looking) and physiological (heart rate and respiratory sinus arrhythmia) measures were collected. Boys with autism looked equally as much as chronological age-matched peers at nonsocial stimuli, but less at CDS stimuli. Boys with autism and language age-matched peers differed in patterns of looking at live versus videotaped CDS stimuli. Boys with autism demonstrated faster heart rates than chronological age-matched peers, but did not differ significantly on respiratory sinus arrhythmia. Reduced attention during CDS may restrict language-learning opportunities for children with autism. The heart rate findings suggest that young children with autism have a nonspecific elevated arousal level.
Journal of Autism and Childhood Schizophrenia 11/2011; 42(8):1616-29. · 3.06 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To examine patterns of sensory responsiveness (i.e., hyperresponsiveness, hyporesponsiveness, and sensory seeking) as factors that may account for variability in social-communicative symptoms of autism and variability in language, social, and communication skill development in children with autism or other developmental disabilities (DDs).
Children with autistic disorder (AD; n = 72, mean age = 52.3 months) and other DDs (n = 44, mean age = 48.1 months) participated in a protocol measuring sensory response patterns; social-communicative symptoms of autism; and language, social, and communication skills.
Hyporesponsiveness was positively associated with social-communicative symptom severity, with no significant group difference in the association. Hyperresponsiveness was not significantly associated with social-communicative symptom severity. A group difference emerged for sensory seeking and social-communicative symptom severity, with a positive association for the AD group only. For the 2 groups of children combined, hyporesponsiveness was negatively associated with language skills and social adaptive skills. Sensory seeking also was negatively associated with language skills. These associations did not differ between the 2 groups.
Aberrant sensory processing may play an important role in the pathogenesis of autism and other DDs as well as in the rate of acquisition of language, social, and communication skills.
Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research 08/2011; 54(6):1562-76. · 1.88 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: The extent to which early social communication behaviors predict later communication and intellectual outcomes was investigated via retrospective video analysis. Joint attention, imitation, and complex object play behaviors were coded from edited home videos featuring scenes of 29 children with ASD at 9-12 and/or 15-18 months. A quantitative interval recording of behavior and a qualitative rating of the developmental level were applied. Social communication behaviors increased between 9-12 and 15-18 months. Their mean level during infancy, but not the rate of change, predicted both Vineland Communication scores and intellectual functioning at 3-7 years. The two methods of measurement yielded similar results. Thus, early social communicative behaviors may play pivotal roles in the development of subsequent communication and intellectual functioning.
Journal of Autism and Childhood Schizophrenia 08/2011; 42(6):1064-74. · 3.06 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: This study evaluates an intervention targeting social-communication and play skills (Advancing Social-communication And Play; ASAP) implemented by school staff in a public preschool setting. With increases in enrollment of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in school systems, establishing the effectiveness and feasibility of interventions implemented in school settings is important. In clinical settings, interventions targeting social-communication and play behaviors have increased these skills and impacted later language abilities. Results of this single-case design study indicated the ASAP intervention had a positive impact on social-communication and play skills for three preschoolers with ASD. All participants showed either increases in frequency or more stability in targeted behaviors. Social validity results provide additional support for the use of ASAP with preschoolers with ASD.
Autism 07/2011; 16(1):27-44. · 2.27 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To determine the extent to which behavioral and physiological responses during child-directed speech (CDS) correlate concurrently and predictively with communication skills in young children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD).
Twenty-two boys with ASD (initial mean age: 35 months) participated in a longitudinal study. At entry, behavioral (i.e., percentage looking) and physiological (i.e., vagal activity) measures were collected during the presentation of CDS stimuli. A battery of standardized communication measures was administered at entry and readministered 12 months later.
Percentage looking during CDS was strongly correlated with all entry and follow-up communication scores; vagal activity during CDS was moderately to strongly correlated with entry receptive language, follow-up expressive language, and social-communicative adaptive skills. After controlling for entry communication skills, vagal activity during CDS accounted for significant variance in follow-up communication skills, but percentage looking during CDS did not.
Behavioral and physiological responses to CDS are significantly related to concurrent and later communication skills of children with ASD. Furthermore, higher vagal activity during CDS predicts better communication outcomes 12 months later, after initial communication skills are accounted for. Further research is needed to better understand the physiological mechanisms underlying variable responses to CDS among children with ASD.
Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research 08/2010; 53(4):1052-64. · 1.88 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: This study combined parent and observational measures to examine the association between aberrant sensory features and restricted, repetitive behaviors in children with autism (N=67) and those with developmental delays (N=42). Confirmatory factor analysis was used to empirically validate three sensory constructs of interest: hyperresponsiveness, hyporesponsiveness, and sensory seeking. Examining the association between the three derived sensory factor scores and scores on the Repetitive Behavior Scales--Revised revealed the co-occurrence of these behaviors in both clinical groups. Specifically, high levels of hyperresponsive behaviors predicted high levels of repetitive behaviors, and the relationship between these variables remained the same controlling for mental age. We primarily found non-significant associations between hyporesponsiveness or sensory seeking and repetitive behaviors, with the exception that sensory seeking was associated with ritualistic/sameness behaviors. These findings suggest that shared neurobiological mechanisms may underlie hyperresponsive sensory symptoms and repetitive behaviors and have implications for diagnostic classification as well as intervention.
Autism Research 04/2010; 3(2):78-87. · 3.69 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Multiple articles describe a constellation of language, personality, and social-behavioral features present in relatives that mirror the symptom domains of autism, but are much milder in expression. Studies of this broad autism phenotype (BAP) may provide a potentially important complementary approach for detecting the genes causing autism and defining associated neural circuitry by identifying more refined phenotypes that can be measured quantitatively in both affected and unaffected individuals and that are tied to functioning in particular regions of the brain.
To gain insight into neuropsychological features that index genetic liability to autism.
Case-control study.
The general community.
Thirty-eight high-functioning individuals with autism and parents of autistic individuals, both with and without the BAP (n = 83), as well as control individuals.
A comprehensive battery of neuropsychological tasks assessing social cognition, executive function, and global vs local processing strategies (central coherence).
Both individuals with autism and parents with the BAP differed from controls on measures of social cognition, with performance in the other 2 domains being more similar to controls.
Data suggest that the social cognitive domain may be an important target for linking phenotype to cognitive process to brain structure in autism and may ultimately provide insight into the genes involved in autism.
Archives of general psychiatry 06/2009; 66(5):518-26. · 12.26 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: This pilot study compared temporal coordination during a precision grip task between 13 children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) who were high functioning and 13 peers with typical development.
Temporal coordination between grip and load forces was measured using latency between onset of grip and load forces, grip force at onset of load force, peak grip force (PGF), and time to PGF.
Compared with peers with typical development, participants with ASD demonstrated prolonged latency between grip and load forces, elevated grip force at onset of load force, and increased movement variability. PGF and time to PGF were not significantly different between the 2 groups.
These findings indicate temporal dyscoordination in participants with ASD. The findings also enhance our understanding of motor coordination deficits in persons with ASD and have theoretical as well as clinical implications.
Pediatric physical therapy: the official publication of the Section on Pediatrics of the American Physical Therapy Association 02/2009; 21(2):205-11.
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ABSTRACT: To describe the development of young boys with fragile X syndrome (FXS).
Fifty-five boys (aged 8-48 months at study entry) with the full mutation FXS received multiple developmental assessments.
As expected, the boys' rate of development was significantly lower than chronological age expectations. No evidence of slowing in the rate of development was found. Autistic behavior was negatively associated with development, but maternal IQ was not. Developmental delays were evident in some domains as early as 9 months; however, initial detection of delays is complicated by measures and criteria used. Developmental age scores at 31 months of age were related to scores obtained at 61 months of age only in the global composite and visual reception domain.
Developmental delays are evident in some infants with FXS as young as 9 months of age. Pediatric psychologists need to be informed about the developmental profiles in young children with FXS to accurately diagnose, treat, and support these children and their families.
Journal of Pediatric Psychology 01/2009; 34(8):827-36. · 2.91 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: This study examined the relationship between repetitive behaviors and sensory processing issues in school-aged children with high functioning autism (HFA). Children with HFA (N = 61) were compared to healthy, typical controls (N = 64) to determine the relationship between these behavioral classes and to examine whether executive dysfunction explained any relationship between the variables. Particular types of repetitive behavior (i.e., stereotypy and compulsions) were related to sensory features in autism; however, executive deficits were only correlated with repetitive behavior. This finding suggests that executive dysfunction is not the shared neurocognitive mechanism that accounts for the relationship between restricted, repetitive behaviors and aberrant sensory features in HFA. Group status, younger chronological age, presence of sensory processing issues, and difficulties with behavior regulation predicted the presence of repetitive behaviors in the HFA group.
Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders 01/2009; 3(4):959-966. · 2.96 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Comparing children's skills across and within domains of development has become a standard in providing early intervention services. Profiling a child's strengths and challenges can help in making decisions regarding eligibility, diagnosis, and intervention. Profiling is particularly important for children who are not yet talking, due to the variability in production skills and the lack of guidelines as to which children are "at risk" for communication deficits versus those who are "late talkers." One area underutilized in profiling is gesture development, despite the fact that research has indicated that the amount and type of gesture use can help in early identification and is predictive of later language.
To guide practicing professionals and researchers in using gesture development to profile children's communication skills, this article provides an overview of the types of gestures and their development, describes assessment methods and tools to document gesture development, pinpoints behaviors and factors important in identifying children with disabilities, and ends with brief examples of using profiling in assessment and intervention planning.
Gesture use should be an important component in profiling children's communication skills, and this type of profiling can enhance both the assessment and intervention process.
American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology 12/2008; 18(1):95-108. · 2.03 Impact Factor
