Autism: How Important Is Early Intervention
by Tami Bernard
Research for the 21st Century: Spring 2006 WAOL course
"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science."
Albert Einstein 1930
INTRODUCTION
Autism is often referred to as a mystery or a missing puzzle piece. A puzzle missing even one piece is not complete. It appears the way to untangle this mystery of autism is one piece at a time. With this approach there is hope. Hope to unlock the mystery and so the lives of so many that live within the walls of this condition called autism.
Autism is a brain disorder that often impedes a persons ability to communicate with and relate to others. Signs of autism usually present themselves before the age of three. Typically parents first become concerned when they notice their childs speech is delayed. Parents will also notice their child doesn't interact with or respond like other toddlers the same age. Autism also affects how a child perceives and processes sensory information. The severity of autism varies from needing help for most tasks of day to day living to living independently. There are theories that early diagnosis and treatment have resulted in many people with autism being able to live as independent adults.
The focus of my research for this project is the question of how important is early intervention. In order for there to be early intervention there is a need for early diagnosis. If treatment is started immediately does this put a child at an advantage over those who do not start therapy at this young age? I will take a look at this important question to try and determine some of the answers to these questions.
Topic Analysis
Academic Disciplines
The following disciplines offered the most insight and information for my particular approach to this topic.
Psychology
Medicine
Library of Congress Subject Headings
The following subject headings were most helpful in searching for books in library catalogs:
Autism in Children
Child Development Deviations
Mentally Handicapped Youth
Childhood Autism
Library of Congress Classification numbers
The following call numbers were most helpful in finding books on the library shelves:
RJ 506.A9
RC 553.A88
LC 4717
RC 569.7
Keywords
The following key terms were most helpful in identifying relevant information from online databases and reference book indexes:
Autism
Sensory Integration
Autism Spectrum
Autism Diagnosis
Autism Education
Autism Therapy
Description of my keyword search strategy:
My search began with words I was familiar with then I was able to locate new words for my search. I then proceeded to the U.S. Library Of Congress Subject Headings books in search of new words. I found the books extremely helpful in finding new keywords and terms. Another successful way I located key words was the beginning of the books on autism I had located previously.
Most Important Databases and Periodical Indexes
ProQuest: http://proquest.umi.com/login
Academic Search Premier: http://search.epnet.com/login.aspx
REFERENCE SOURCES
Organizations
Autism Research Institute
Autism Research Institute
Autism Research Institute was established in 1967 by Dr. Bernard Rimland. Dr. Brimland was an early pioneer of ABA Advanced Behavioral Intervention. He was also the first to challenge the long-held belief that autism was caused by poor mothering. The ARI provides information to parents, professionals and the media by mail for free or at low cost. ARI tracks, monitors, funds, and implements research into the causes of autism.
Autism Society OF America
Autism Society of America
Bernard Rimland P.h. D. founded the Autism Of America Society in 1965. ASA has become a leading resource for information, research and reference on autism. ASA is also the largest autism organization that can be found with 120,000 member and nearly 200 chapters nationwide.
Statistics
According to the Department of Health & Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention information in a number of studies using up to date criteria for diagnosing autism found some interesting facts. The studies revealed an incidence rate for autism of between 2 and 6 per 1,000 persons. This would translate to 1 in 500 (2/1000) to 1 in 166 (6/1000) children have autism.
· United States. Department Of Health And Human Services. Centers For Disease Control And Prevention. How Common Are Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)? 2006 30 May 2006.
<http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/asd_common.htm>
Articles in Reference Books
- “Autism.” The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology and Behavioral Science. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 3rd ed. 2001.
- “Autism.” Rimland, Bernard. Encyclopedia Americana. 2006. Grolier Online Gray's Harbor College Lib. 05 May 2006. <http://www.go.grolier.com/>
Bernard Rimland is the author of this article. He is also the author of Infantile Autism. He shares some interesting information that I did not see in previous research on this subject such as the Greek meaning of the word that autistic comes from. This article also addresses one time theories that have been abandoned. This is an interesting article that will be helpful because of the new information I found. ''
- Bruey, Carolyn Thorwarth. Demystifying Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Guide To Diagnosis for Parents And Professionals. Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House, Inc., 2004.
Carolyn Bruey is an experienced Psychologist and behavior consultant. She is the author Co-author of several other books including Children with Autism: A Parents Guide. This book takes a clear and practical look at understanding autism. Autism is often referred to as a mystery and this book helps to untangle some of the mystery. This book is helpful for lay readers, parents, educators and caregivers. This book will be helpful to my research to help understand some of the basics of autism from pre-diagnosis to treatment.
- Tilton, Adelle Jameson. The Everything Parent’s Guide To Children With Autism. Avon, MA: F+W Publications., 2004.
Adelle Jameson Tilton is the about.com guide to Autism. This book is for parents of autistic children. There is information about how to communicate with your child, dealing with family problems, finding intervention and support groups and much more. This book deals with real families facing everyday problems with some practical suggestions and solutions. This book will be helpful for my research as it is a comprehensive book. It covers many subjects on autism that I could not previously locate. This book is packed full of useful information.
- Tarkin, Laurie. “Autism Therapy Is Called Effective But Rare”. New York Times. 22 Oct. 2002: F1. ProQuest Research Library. ProQuest Information And Learning Company. Seattle Community College Lib., 10 May 2006 <http://proquest.umi.com/login>
Laurie Tarkin is a writer for the New York Times which has a reputation for being an outstanding news source. I found at least three websites of reputable groups that published her articles. This article informs about the importance of early diagnosis and Therapy for Autism. She describes road blocks and frustrations for parents of autistic children. She gives information on some of the problems associated with diagnosis and therapy problems such as school funding. The intended audience is mainly parents but, informing the general public as well. She quotes many Doctors and reputable institutions for many of her facts.
- Picard, Ken. “No Child Left Behind? Rethinking The Meaning Of Autism”. Seven Days: Sept. 2005: 28A AltPress Watch. ProQuest Information and Learning Company. Seattle Central Community Coll. Lib., 18 May 2006 <http://proquest.umi.com/login>
This newspaper article published in Seven Days is written by Ken Picard. Ken has written several articles about children with autism. This article is based on an interview with parents of an autistic child. This viewpoint is helpful for my research because it addresses the subject of early diagnosis. The parents discuss what affect they believe this had on their autistic child. The intended audience for this article is families and educators of autistic children.
- Eaves, Linda C., and Helena H. Ho. “The Very Early Identification of Autism: Outcome To Age 4 ½-5”. Journal Of Autism And Developmental Disorders. 34.4 (2004): 367-368. ProQuest Research Library. ProQuest Information and Learning Company. Seattle Community Coll. Lib. 21 May 2006 <http://proquest.umi.com/login>
This articled describes how forty nine 2 year olds with signs of autism are recognized By Doctors and screening techniques. They are given diagnostic tests and then revaluated at age 4 ½. The results to these findings are explained in the article. The dependability of these tests at this age are also revealed. This article is meant for clinicians but is written well enough that anyone interested in autism could comprehend it. This article is helpful for my research because it is an example of one of the many studies done to better understand Autism.
- First Signs. 2 May 2006. First Signs Inc. 15 May 2006 <http://www.firstsigns.org/>
The founder and President of First Signs is Nancy Wiseman. This site promotes and informs about a public awareness program especially for pediatric doctors, early childhood educators and parents. This program helps to inform about the importance of early detection and early intervention of autism and other developmental disorders. This site is relevant to my topic because it is centered around my thesis that is “Autism; How important is early intervention?” The perspective of this organization is that everyone needs to know the importance of recognizing the first signs that may lead to an early diagnosis of autism. This site is comprehensive and includes information on starting a First Signs chapter in your area. It also includes information on screenings, diagnosis, and treatments.
- The Source. 2005. MAAP Services For Autism and Asperger Syndrome. 16 May 2006 <http://maapservices.org/>
I found no author information available. The purpose of this site is to inform parents, professionals and anyone interested in finding information regarding services and education for autism and asperger syndrome. This particular site is relevant to my topic in that it is comprehensive and includes many different aspects of the autism spectrum. This site is endorsed by Cambridge University Autism Research Centre and Stanford Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Autism and Asperger Research Reports. The site includes Resources near by, all about autism information, publications, newsletters, Conference information and archived articles from 1984-1999.
- Gerberding, Julie. “Why Early Detection Of Autism Is Crucial.” Autism Speaks. MSNBC. 19 May 2006 <http://www.Autismspeaks.org/video/index.php>
This television interview aired on MSNBC news. The interview Doctors name is Dr. Julie Gerberding. She has been the director for Disease control and hosted Ask The White House. This news interview covers the prevalence of autism, and how many are affected by this disease. This interview is helpful for my research because it address the urgency to detect autism at an early age in order for the child to have the best education, therapy and other advantages that an early diagnosis brings.
My strategy for researching this project was made up of a few things. The first staying organized and then taking things one step at a time. Taking the time to prepare for each assignment and managing my time was key. Having plenty of time to research made the process go fairly smooth.
I began the project with a map for research. This included a broad exploration of information and ideas relevant to my topic. The next step was preparing an outline. The key to a sucsessful start for research for me is a solid outline. Now it was time for the academic disciplines which for my topic are medicine and psychology. Key words was the next to step to build a foundation for my search process. I had no problems finding key words for my topic. I searched in books, Encyclopedias, databases online and the Library of Congress Subject Headings Book. After forming an extremely long list I narrowed it down to the most important key words.
Now that the foundation had been laid came the real quest for information. I used many tools to access different sources. The internet was especially helpful for databases particularly ProQuest. I turned up some of my best Profesional Journal and periodical articles on ProQuest. I also visited the local academic library and was able to obtain substantial information from the reference section. The librarian guided me and gave me some tips to help with the research process. I proceeded to gathering sources makeing sure that the authors from the works I located were authoritive. Equally important was locating accurate information. I had a wide array of choices now to narrow down to the most valuable information for my project. Arranging the Citations proved to be a challenge. I received help from my instructor various MLA guides and the writing lab at the library. Pulling the annotations together was simply a summary of the research I had already completed.
Putting together the pathfinder and putting the final touches on it was fairly simple. I attribute this to staying organized, printing everything out, asking a lot of questions and persevering.
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