Hi everyone!
This week, I was able to see the differences between the dog and proxy settings more clearly. Because most of the kids showed up to their sessions, and also possibly because they were no longer on spring break, there was a much clearer difference between the two that I noticed. One of the most obvious changes for me was the difference in attitude between both sessions. They was a definite shift in the way the children were behaving, even though it seemed to be a more qualitative shift than a quantitative one. Many of the children with the dogs seemed considerably happier, as demonstrated by their facial expressions and the way they acted with the dogs. However, I am still not sure how this change in attitude will translate to the quantitative data. I suspect that the change will be more evident to us after we analyze the data, but it is still very interesting to see how the children are facing the change in setting everyday.
My own research this week focused on the development of ASD, and outlined the changes happening from a child's infancy into his/her later years. As I mentioned previously, early intervention in children with ASD generally yields better results, so it is essential to catch symptoms of such disorders as soon as possible. Studying the development of kids with ASD, and comparing their development to that of normally developing children, is essential so that diagnosis and treatment of these disorders can occur quickly. These types of studies try to predict the signs that parents should look for in their children and the expected developmental trajectories of children with ASD. [1] For instance, in their first year of life, children with ASD might have difficulties processing faces, responding to their names, and other similar acts that would come naturally to normally developing kids. By the time they are one year old, these children might maintain very little eye contact, use very few communicative gestures, and have some delays in language, amongst other things. By the time they are toddlers, children with ASD will show many abnormalities, such as limited/abnormal social interaction (e.g. limited interest in people and limited social reciprocity), communication deficiencies (e.g. low frequencies of communication and stereotypical/idiosyncratic use of language), abnormal play and imagination (e.g. absent or atypical pretend play), etc. Because all children are different, they may demonstrate some of these abnormalities more than others, and they may develop symptoms of ASD earlier or later in life. However, it is generally accepted that symptoms typically emerge before the age of three. [2]
Finally, for those of you who have read this entire post (or for those of you who skipped to the end), here are some pictures of the drawings that the children in the study have drawn in the past few weeks :
[1] Landa, R. J., Gross, A. L., Stuart, E. A., & Faherty, A. "Developmental trajectories in children with and without autism spectrum disorders: the first 3 years." Child development. 84.2 (2013): 429-442. Print.
[2] Chawarska, Kasia. "Autism in Infants and Young Children." Yale University. Yale University, New Haven, CT. n.d. Guest Lecture.
This week, I was able to see the differences between the dog and proxy settings more clearly. Because most of the kids showed up to their sessions, and also possibly because they were no longer on spring break, there was a much clearer difference between the two that I noticed. One of the most obvious changes for me was the difference in attitude between both sessions. They was a definite shift in the way the children were behaving, even though it seemed to be a more qualitative shift than a quantitative one. Many of the children with the dogs seemed considerably happier, as demonstrated by their facial expressions and the way they acted with the dogs. However, I am still not sure how this change in attitude will translate to the quantitative data. I suspect that the change will be more evident to us after we analyze the data, but it is still very interesting to see how the children are facing the change in setting everyday.
My own research this week focused on the development of ASD, and outlined the changes happening from a child's infancy into his/her later years. As I mentioned previously, early intervention in children with ASD generally yields better results, so it is essential to catch symptoms of such disorders as soon as possible. Studying the development of kids with ASD, and comparing their development to that of normally developing children, is essential so that diagnosis and treatment of these disorders can occur quickly. These types of studies try to predict the signs that parents should look for in their children and the expected developmental trajectories of children with ASD. [1] For instance, in their first year of life, children with ASD might have difficulties processing faces, responding to their names, and other similar acts that would come naturally to normally developing kids. By the time they are one year old, these children might maintain very little eye contact, use very few communicative gestures, and have some delays in language, amongst other things. By the time they are toddlers, children with ASD will show many abnormalities, such as limited/abnormal social interaction (e.g. limited interest in people and limited social reciprocity), communication deficiencies (e.g. low frequencies of communication and stereotypical/idiosyncratic use of language), abnormal play and imagination (e.g. absent or atypical pretend play), etc. Because all children are different, they may demonstrate some of these abnormalities more than others, and they may develop symptoms of ASD earlier or later in life. However, it is generally accepted that symptoms typically emerge before the age of three. [2]
Finally, for those of you who have read this entire post (or for those of you who skipped to the end), here are some pictures of the drawings that the children in the study have drawn in the past few weeks :
Thanks for reading!
Swati :)
[2] Chawarska, Kasia. "Autism in Infants and Young Children." Yale University. Yale University, New Haven, CT. n.d. Guest Lecture.
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