Research code: مقاله مستخرج از رساله دکتری است
Ethics code: مقاله مستخرج از رساله دکتری بوده و نویسندگان متعهد می ش
Clinical trials code: مقاله مستخرج از رساله دکتری است
Islamic Azad University , Dr.vafa@gmail.com
Abstract: (586 Views)
Background and purpose: In addition to academic problems, children with autism also have problems such as emotional and behavioral problems, which can endanger their health, mental health, and the quality of life of those around them. The purpose of this research was to determine the effect of cognitive rehabilitation based on strengthening working memory on self-control, verbal fluency and information processing speed of children with autism. Methods: The statistical population of this semi-experimental research was formed by children with autism spectrum disorder in Sabzevar city, 40 people were selected and randomly divided into two groups of 20 people. Then, all the subjects took the self-control scales of Williams et al. (1997), Wechsler's intelligence (2003), the subtest of letter signs and signs of the face test (verbal fluency) and the subtest of encoding and symbolization from the Wechsler intelligence test series for children. They completed the pre-test. Then therapeutic intervention based on strengthening working memory was performed on the experimental group during 18 one-hour sessions. At the end of the treatment period and three months later, both groups completed the questionnaires again. Finally, the data were analyzed using the analysis of variance test with repeated measurements. Results: The results showed that cognitive rehabilitation based on strengthening working memory is effective on self-control, verbal fluency and information processing speed of children with autism spectrum disorder. Conclusion: According to the results, it is recommended to use cognitive rehabilitation interventions based on strengthening working memory to improve the self-control of children with autism.
The prevalence of autism has increased over the past three decades
So that the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder in America and other countries is about 1%. Autism is believed to be on the rise, so it is imperative that therapists make an all-out effort to find its causes and cures.
The International Autism Society has estimated that the number of children with autism will increase significantly in the coming decades. The global prevalence of this disorder has increased dramatically since the first epidemiological studies in the 1960s and early 1970s.
In addition to academic problems, children with autism have other problems, including emotional and behavioral problems, which can endanger their health, mental health, and the quality of life of those around them. In recent decades, deficits in working memory, accuracy, and attention have been proposed as one of the important cognitive causal hypotheses in children with autism.
Since verbal fluency and processing speed are related to the speed and accuracy of reading in children with autism, and considering that most autistic children experience many emotional-behavioral problems, examining the above variables in children with autism is very important.
One of the indicators that is noticeable in students with autism spectrum disorder is low information processing speed, which is considered as an important foundation of cognitive abilities. Processing speed is a multidimensional factor that represents a person's cognitive performance in a certain period of time.
Attention is also a concept studied in cognitive psychology that refers to the way we process certain information in our living environment. The attentional system allows us to focus on something specific in our environment, and it also influences our perception of surrounding stimuli.
Another characteristic of students with autism spectrum disorder is their lack of self-control skills. The concept of self-control in social learning theory expresses the fact that self-control as a concept can be interpreted, learned and taught, and can be effective on the self-help behaviors of students with autism spectrum disorder with the help of cognitive regulation of emotion.
Cognitive rehabilitation is based on strengthening working memory and strengthening types of attention, including therapeutic approaches that are useful in improving cognitive defects. The cognitive rehabilitation method is a special and unique type of treatment in that it focuses solely and mainly on cognitive abilities.
In explaining the effectiveness of cognitive rehabilitation based on strengthening working memory on the verbal fluency of children with autism spectrum disorders, it can be said that the basis of improving cognitive deficits through cognitive rehabilitation is the neural plasticity of the brain. Based on this property, cognitive rehabilitation intervention increases the synaptic connections between neurons and improves the lost cognitive function.
In cognitive rehabilitation based on strengthening working memory, efforts are made to strengthen synaptic connections through cognitive tasks that are presented to the individual through various techniques and tasks. In this cognitive rehabilitation approach, the difficulty of the tasks is automatically increased throughout the treatment sessions and the client's performance is continuously challenged. Neuroimaging studies have shown changes in brain activity patterns following cognitive rehabilitation in children with autism spectrum disorders.
In explaining the findings, it can be said that since the relationship between emotion and cognition is two-way, when emotional information cannot be perceived and evaluated in cognitive processing processes, a person will be disturbed emotionally and cognitively.
This disability disrupts the organization of one's emotions and cognitions, and one fails in stressful situations. In other words, children who can control their inappropriate behaviors and have the ability to regulate and adjust cognitive-behavioral When faced with stressful events and frustrating conditions, they mostly use problem-oriented control strategies. It can be said that enhancing working memory and attention facilitates people's use of fresh appraisals, and people who rely on fresh appraisals provide more cognitive resources to aid their sustained attention, which leads to greater control in everyday life.
Conclusion
The results confirm the effect of cognitive rehabilitation based on strengthening working memory on self-control, verbal fluency and information processing speed of children with autism, so it is recommended to use cognitive rehabilitation interventions based on strengthening working memory to improve self-control of children with autism.
Keywords: cognitive rehabilitation, self-control, verbal fluency, information processing, children with autism
Type of Study: Research |
Subject:
Clinical Psychiatry
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