Asperger?s Syndrome and Instructional Intervention Essay -- essays res

Aspergers Syndrome and Instructional InterventionAspergers Syndrome (AS) is a pervasive developmental harm first identified in 1944 by Dr. Hans Asperger, an Austrian pediatrician. However, since his paper was written in German and published during World War II, his findings were not well cognize in the United States and in other non-German speaking countries. In 1981, Dr. Lorna Wing, a British researcher, brought AS to the attention of the English-speaking world. In addition to summarizing Aspergers findings, she as well pointed out the similarities between AS and autism, raising the question Are they the same disorder or two separate ones (Ozonoff, Dawson, & McPartland, 2002)? It was not until 1994 that the American psychiatric tie beam included AS as a diagnostic category in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fourth Edition (DSM-IV Myles, 2002).Although some debate exists among researchers, AS is considered part of the autism spectrum (Attwood, 1998). Au tism is generally defined as having an impairment of both normal kind interactions and communication (Out of the Deep Freeze, 2003). However, individuals with AS are often highly verbal (Gottlieb, 2003). Even though labeled high-functioning autism, AS may cause the greatest disability in adolescence and young adults when it comes to developing social relationships. People with AS desire social interactions, however they lack the appropriate social skills (Barnhill, 2002) and, in turn, have trouble interacting with people (Travis, 2003). They do not have the ability to read social cues and will often display socially and emotionally inappropriate behaviors lack of empathy, one-sided interactions, pedantic and repetitive speech, and intense absorption in certain subjects (Attwood, 1998). Non-verbal communication theory skills are also impaired. These may include limited use of gestures, clumsy body language, limited facial gestures, inappropriate expression, and peculiar, stiff gaz e (Attwood, 1998). Additional characteristics of AS include literal thinking, poor problem-solving skills, poor organizational skills, and difficulty in discriminating between relevant and irrelevant stimuli (Myles & Simpson, 2002).Identifying an individual with AS usually does not occur until after the preschool years. The symptoms are not generally recognized ... ....nasponline.org/publications/cq313asperger_ss.htmlGottlieb, S. (2003). US study shows 10-fold increase in autism over the past 20 years. British health check Journal, 326, 71.Myles, B. S. (2002). Introduction to the special issue on asperger syndrome. Focus on Autism &Other Developmental Disabilities, 17(3), 130-131.Myles, B. S., & Simpson, R. L. (2002). Asperger syndrome An overview of characteristics.Focus on Autism & Other Developmental Disabilities, 17(3), 132-137.Out of the deep freeze. (2003). The Economist, 336, 71.Ozonoff, S., Dawson, G., & McPartland, J. (2002). A Parents Guide to Asperger Syndrome &High Func tioning Autism. New York Guilford Press.Safran, S. P., Safran, J. S., & Ellis, K. (2003). Intervention ABCs for children with aspergersyndrome. Topics in Language Disorders, 23(2), 154-165.Travis, J. (2003). Autism advance. Science News, 163(14), 212-213.Watkins, C. E. (2000). Aspergers disorder. Retrieve June 12, 2003 from Northern CountyPsychiatric Association Web site http//www.baltimorepsych.com/aspergers.htm