How do parents of autistic children recognize early changes in behavior?

Abstract

The study aims to determine how the parents of autistic children recognize early changes in their children's behavior. Identification of such abnormalities is of major importance for early diagnosis of the disorder, which allows for adequate interventions and a more favorable prognosis. The parents of 105 autistic children filled out questionnaires, were asked to describe the earliest behavior of tested children and recollecting the time when they appeared. Such behavior includes impairments in social interaction and play behaviors, speech and communication development, and development of stereotypical behavior and interests. Findings indicate that the nature and frequency of such deficits depend on the time of onset, that is, age. It is demonstrated that after the parents notice changes in their children's behavior, a significant period of time elapses before the final diagnosis of autism is made.

Cilj istraživanja je da utvrdi kako roditelji autistične dece prepoznaju rane promene u njihovom ponašanju. Prepoznavanje ovih abnormalnosti je od velikog značaja za što ranije dijagnostikovanje poremećaja, koje omogućava preduzimanje odgovarajućih intervencija i povoljnu prognozu. Roditelji stotinu i petoro dece sa autizmom su popunili upitnik u kome se tražilo da opišu najranija ponašanja dece koja smo ispitivali i da se prisete vremena njihovog pojavljivanja. Ponašanja uključuju oštećenja socijalnih interakcija i igre, razvoja govora i komunikacije i pojavu stereotipnih ponašanja i interesovanja. Nalazi pokazuju da priroda i učestalost ovih deficita zavise od vremena njihovog pojavljivanja. tj. uzrasta. Pokazano je da postoji značajan vremenski period od kada roditelji primete promene u ponašanju deteta do konačnog postavljanja dijagnoze autizma.