Hello!
As I mentioned in my previous post, this week marked the transition week in the study. All of the children faced some type of change, whether it was the shift from interacting with a proxy to engaging with a therapy dog, or vice versa. I previously mentioned that I was expecting some type of reaction from the children as a result of this transition. I was expecting some excitement from the kids who would finally play with the dogs, and maybe some disappointment from the children who had to now engage with the proxies. However, possibly due to several unexpected variables, I have not seen much of a change from most of the children yet. This week was spring break for all of the children, and as a result, about half of them did not show up to their study session. The ones who did show up might have been a bit disoriented due to the lack of their normal schedules, and I know from experience that this does affect one's ordinary behaviors. Additionally, the kids and the dogs were all getting accustomed to the new settings, and I am sure they will become more comfortable in the coming weeks. Even though I did not see any immediate results, I am excited to see how the rest of the study goes!
As promised, I will talk a little about treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders, but my summary will definitely not be able to address every part of treatment. As I have said repeatedly, and as you are probably getting tired of hearing, ASD is a very, very complex disorder. Due to this, the treatment strategies can be very different from each other, depending on the client's needs. One general area of consensus seems to be that early intervention is very important, and usually leads to better results. In addition, intervention must be interdisciplinary, with emphasis on social skills, communication, play, behavioral issues, adaptive skills, and other such categories. This type of intervention must involve experienced providers, as well as family and peers. Finally, it is essential that intervention is individualized based on the child's needs. All children with ASD have certain strengths and weaknesses, so it is important to plan an intervention program based on these.
Thanks for reading!
Swati :)
As I mentioned in my previous post, this week marked the transition week in the study. All of the children faced some type of change, whether it was the shift from interacting with a proxy to engaging with a therapy dog, or vice versa. I previously mentioned that I was expecting some type of reaction from the children as a result of this transition. I was expecting some excitement from the kids who would finally play with the dogs, and maybe some disappointment from the children who had to now engage with the proxies. However, possibly due to several unexpected variables, I have not seen much of a change from most of the children yet. This week was spring break for all of the children, and as a result, about half of them did not show up to their study session. The ones who did show up might have been a bit disoriented due to the lack of their normal schedules, and I know from experience that this does affect one's ordinary behaviors. Additionally, the kids and the dogs were all getting accustomed to the new settings, and I am sure they will become more comfortable in the coming weeks. Even though I did not see any immediate results, I am excited to see how the rest of the study goes!
As promised, I will talk a little about treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders, but my summary will definitely not be able to address every part of treatment. As I have said repeatedly, and as you are probably getting tired of hearing, ASD is a very, very complex disorder. Due to this, the treatment strategies can be very different from each other, depending on the client's needs. One general area of consensus seems to be that early intervention is very important, and usually leads to better results. In addition, intervention must be interdisciplinary, with emphasis on social skills, communication, play, behavioral issues, adaptive skills, and other such categories. This type of intervention must involve experienced providers, as well as family and peers. Finally, it is essential that intervention is individualized based on the child's needs. All children with ASD have certain strengths and weaknesses, so it is important to plan an intervention program based on these.
Thanks for reading!
Swati :)
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