Autism and Retardation

Axia College Material

Appendix F

Autism and Mental Retardation

Respond to the following:

1. List the primary features of autism.

Autism can be described as a pervasive developmental disorder which influences a person’s ability to interact and communicate with others. Many people that are classified with mild autism are able to live on their own whereas the people with severe autism are non-verbal and cannot function on their own. Listed below are the primary features of autism.

Social Skills: When a child is diagnosed with autism they show signs of that their social development can be delayed. Many of the children have little interest in making friends and usually have little or no eye contact. They are known to not seek playmates and interact with children of their age. Adults and children tend to have outburst if their routine changes in any type of way.

Language: When it comes to learning and speaking, many autistic children have a delayed process. Children that do speak will eventually regress and not speak at all. You will find that many children and adults speak in robotic tones and maybe sometimes sing their words and phrases. Many will speak phrases and repeat them over and over again for their own comfort. Sometimes they tend to act as if they are deaf. They sometimes refuse to respond when they are spoken to.

Behavioral Signs: many adults and children will avoid physical contact depending on the severity of their disorder. Many do not display or even receive affections such as hugs and kisses. They sometimes will only respond if you touch them very lightly. People with autism use repetitive movements because that is what keeps them calm and keep their outburst in control.

Medical Signs: There are many people that have autism that suffer from seizures and sometimes epilepsy. Many researchers believe that children, who regress in speech, sometimes develop a seizure disorder.

2. Which explanation for autism is no longer considered valid and...