Self Improvement Blog: Autism

Exploring Contemporary Psychology: Autism

Many psychologists have argued that young children must develop a "theory of mind," a set of interrelated concepts and beliefs that the child employs in order to make sense of her own behavior and that of others. This set of beliefs allows the child to understand the behavior of other people, and, to some extent, to predict how they'll act in the future.

What would happen, though, if a child failed to develop a theory of mind? Given the functions attributed to this theory, one might expect severe disruption in the child's capacity to communicate with others, to develop friendships, to respond appropriately to others' actions. This line of thinking leads directly to a prominent hypothesis about the nature of autism.

The specific symptoms of autism vary from case to case, but someone with autism will typically have difficulties in their social relations, their ability to communicate, and their pattern of imagination and play. In the social sphere, autistic children show a diverse array of difficulties, but it is common for a child with autism to seem entirely oblivious to others. In some cases, an autistic child actively seeks to avoid social contact. If they notice others at all, they seem completely disinterested in what those others might be doing or thinking.

Some autistic children are completely mute. Others speak, but in a flat monotone, with no accompanying gestures. Some simply echo what others say.

Children with autism also seem to have problems in imagination. They often show an inability to engage in pretend play — and so there are no dolls, no pretend parties, no stories. If an autistic child plays with toys at all, the play is often repetitive and unconventional — simply spinning one of the wheels on a toy car, for example, rather than driving it around the room.

Autism is also associated with mental retardation. Most individuals with autism have IQ scores below 80, but 25 percent have near-normal intelligence, and a small percentage actually seems gifted in specific areas.

In explanation of these symptoms, one proposal is that autistic children suffer from a particular form of brain damage, the result of which is that they do not develop the set of beliefs that we call a theory of mind. This leads directly to their inability to relate to others — since, without a theory of mind, they find the behavior of other people to be inexplicable, unpredictable, and constantly bewildering. This produces enormous difficulties in interacting with others, and the frustration that results may be what leads many autistic individuals simply to withdraw from the social world. In addition, with no capacity to understand others, it is unsurprising that the autistic individual has communication problems — and, with few interactions, little opportunity to develop language skills. Likewise, the imagination difficulties may also derive from the inability of children with autism to think about the thoughts or feelings of others — this is why they can't project thoughts onto a doll, as part of the normal process of pretend play.

Debate continues over whether this is the full account of autism. Autistic children do have severe difficulties with tasks specifically designed to assess the child's theory of mind, but further evidence suggests these children may have other problems as well. Hence we cannot regard the theory of mind explanation as a firmly-established claim. In the meantime, though, this account provides us with a powerful reminder of what can go wrong if a child lacks an adequate theory of mind, and with that, just how important a theory of mind is.

Early signs of the disorder include a failure to maintain eye-to-eye contact, to reach out the familiar persons, and to imitate. There are checklists available which enable parents to determined whether their child is exhibiting autistic tendencies and such checklist include Baron-Cohen checklist for autism in Toddlers (CHAT)

The CHAT
Checklist for parents to determine their child is exhibiting autism during the 18-month developmental check-up. Also consulate your General Practitioners or Health Visitors

Section A: Ask Yourself:

1. Does your child enjoy being swung, bounced on your knee, etc?
YES/NO

2. Does your child take an interest in other children?
YES/NO

3. Does your child like climbing on things, such as up stairs?
YES/NO

4. Does your child enjoy playing peek-a-boo/hide-and-seek?
YES/NO

5. Does your child ever PRETEND, for example, to make a cup of tea using a toy cup and teapot, or pretend other things?
YES/NO

6. Does your child ever use his/her index finger to point, to ASK for something?
YES/NO

7. Does your child ever use his/her index finger to point, to indicate INTEREST in something?
YES/NO

8. Can your child play properly with small toys (egg cars or bricks) without just mouthing, fiddling or dropping them?
YES/NO

9. Does your child ever bring objects over to you (parent) to SHOW you something?
YES/NO

Section B: GP or HV Observation:
I. During the appointment, has the child made eye contact with you?
YES/NO

ii. Get child's attention, then point across the room at an interesting object and say 'Oh look! There's a (name of toy!)' Watch child's face. Does the child look across to see what you are pointing at?
YES/NO*

iii. Get the child's attention, then give child a miniature toy cup and teapot and say 'Can you make a cup of tea? 'Does the child pretend to pour out tea, drink it, etc.?
YES/NO**

iv. Say to the child 'Where's the light?', or 'Show me the light'. Does the child point with his/her index finger at the light?
YES/NO***

v. Can the child build a tower of bricks? (If so how many?)
(Number of bricks:.............)
YES/NO

* (To record YES on this item, ensure the child has not simply looked at your hand, but has actually looked at the object you are pointing at.)

** (If you can elicit an example of pretending in some other game, score a YES on this item.)

*** (Repeat this with 'Where's the teddy?' or some other unreachable object, if child does not understand the word 'light'. To record YES on this item, the child must have looked up at your face around the time of pointing.) Copyright of MRC/SBC 1995

This test is is aim to identify those at risk of developing the disorder. Some researchers have also suggested that autism may be an inherited disorder because there is a high incidence of fragile X disorder in autistic children. Twin studies suggested higher concordance rate in identical than fraternal twins. Currently, however, there is no evidence that autism is a simple inherited disorder and there is no clear cut evidence. The outcome for autism is varied, some individuals develop little language whereas others are able to go on to full time education, get married and start family. The most important therapeutic intervention appears to involve intensive education aimed at changing the behavioural and communication problems. As such, most interventions are designed for use by parents and teachers who have greatest contact with
children. Medical interventions have also developed but these appears to be more effective in improving attention than eliminating all the characteristic of the disorder.

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