Supporting Families of Preschool Children with Autism

Abstract

This paper describes a local education authority project to provide support to the families of preschool children with autistic spectrum disorders. As part of an evaluation study, all parents were interviewed when their children entered full-time education and left the service's caseload. The report outlines key findings regarding levels of satisfaction with the service provided and describes parental responses to the different components of the support offered. All parents rated the input of the support worker as 'very useful'. Parents particularly valued the following: support to 'make sense' of their child's development and needs; practical strategies for facilitating language and engaging in interactive play; and support to the nurseries and playgroups attended by their children. The interviews also looked at parents' experience of diagnosis and their needs in the immediate aftermath. Key implications of these findings, and of this model of service delivery, are also discussed.

Oti̇zm Spektrum Bozukluğu Tanili Çocuk Sahi̇bi̇ Anneleri̇n Deneyi̇mleri̇

“…Alanyazındaki çalışmalarda da, bireyler OSB gibi zor bir durumu kontrol edilemez, değiştirilemez ve gelecekte de devam eden bir durum olarak algıladıklarında uyum güçlükleri ve psikolojik sorunlar ortaya çıkabilmektedir (Dale ve diğ., 2006;Weiner, 1985;Whittaker, 2002 Yaz-2014 Cilt:13 Sayı:50 (96-111) www.esosder.org Summer-2014 Volume:13 Issue:50 olarak, annelerin OSB'ye çaba gösterildiğinde değiştirilebilir ve kontrol edilebilir bir durum anlamı yüklemelerinin, daha olumlu bir bakış açısı içinde olmalarını sağladığı akla gelmektedir (Dale ve diğ., 2006;Weiner, 1985;Whittaker, 2002) Araştırmanın bulguları, annelerin yaşadıkları olumsuz duyguların, çocuklarının belirli dönemleriyle ve özellikleriyle bağlantılı olabileceğine ilişkin alanyazın doğrultusunda da ele alınmıştır. Alanyazındaki çeşitli çalışmalarda, tanının konduğu dönemde annelerin daha fazla stres yaşadıkları ve uygun bir eğitimin başlamasıyla stresin azaldığı vurgulanmaktadır.…”

The life experiences of Turkish mothers who have children with an autism spectrum disorder

“…As pointed in literature (e.g. Dale et al, 2006;Whittaker, 2002), the perception of the mothers about the continuity of the situation leading to stress may have resulted in the emergence of negative emotions. This finding implies that the mothers may expect a "medical cure for ASD" that will "change their child completely and immediately" rather than a development through educational support.…”

“…Individuals make various "causal attributions" about the cause of unexpected stressful events (e.g. ASD) or to search for explanation (Weiner, 1985(Weiner, , 2000Whittaker, 2002). Questions like "why my child?"…”

“…In causal stability, attribution is made to whether or not the cause can or cannot change in the course of time. In causal controllability, attribution is made to whether or not an individual has a control over changing the cause (Whittaker, 2002). Causal attributions have a function of protecting individuals from stressful events and making them adjust more easily.…”

Staff's Collaborative Work Process with an Adolescent Boy with Autism and Intellectual Disability in Community-based Sheltered Housing

“…Also, Jennett, Harris and Mesibov (2003) emphasize that appropriate tools such as adequate training are necessary and increase the professionals' feelings of competence (Cherniss 1985). Van Bourgondien and Reichle (1997) and Whitaker (2002) stressed that specialised training is required to handle the different specific problems in autism. According to Murphy et al (2005) violent and challenging behaviours may occur in people with an autistic disorder when their daily routines are interrupted, due to their sensitivity to change in the daily environment and their need for a clear and indisputable structure in the staff's approach.…”