Systematization of guidelines to mothers of autistic spectrum children about language and communication

• Grant number: 07/03607-2
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Duration: December 01, 2007 - November 30, 2009
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Speech Therapy
• Principal Investigator: Fernanda Dreux Miranda Fernandes
• Grantee: Fernanda Dreux Miranda Fernandes
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina (FM). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The role of language in autistic spectrum disorders is a single one because, contrary to other broad developmental disorders in which language impairments are a symptom or a consequence of other deficits. In the autistic spectrum language disorders constitute one of the three diagnostic criteria. In our reality an important part of the research about language in autistic spectrum disorders have been performed by the Speech and Language Research Laboratory on Autistic Spectrum Disorders (LIF-DEA). A recent research that studied the results of three different language therapeutic proposals for children of the autistic spectrum confirmed the great individual variations characteristic of these disorders. Both the individual and the language workshop situations yielded to significant and equivalent progress. The same was not true to the situations where the mothers also participated in the therapy sessions. Actions directed towards the families of autistic children demand extreme care to avoid issues dissociated to language or to the language therapy approach. The language therapy process can benefit from specific orientations about language and communication processes focused on individual profiles of abilities and inabilities of each communicative dyad. The aim of this study is to verify the results obtained by 10 sessions of specific instruction about language and communication to mother of autistic spectrum children. Subjects will be 20 mother-child dyads, attending language therapy in the LIF-DEA. There will be five instruction sessions and five accompanying sessions to small groups of mothers parallel to the children’s language therapy. The results will compare each child’s performance prior and after de instruction sessions in the domains of communicative profile, social-cognitive performance, quality of life and functionality. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

FERNANDA DREUX MIRANDA FERNANDES; CIBELLE ALBUQUERQUE DE LA HIGUERA AMATO; JULIANA IZIDRO BALESTRO; DANIELA REGINA MOLINI-AVEJONAS. Orientação a mães de crianças do espectro autístico a respeito da comunicação e linguagem. J. Soc. Bras. Fonoaudiol., v. 23, n. 1, p. 1-7, 2011-03-00. (07/03607-2)