Autism
From the start, most infants are social beings. Early in life, they gaze at people, turn toward voices, endearingly grasp a finger, and even smile. In contrast, most children with autism seem to have tremendous difficulty learning to engage in the give-and-take of everyday human interaction. The disorder described above is a developmental disability of the brain that typically affects a person's ability to communicate, form relationships with others, and respond appropriately to the environment. (Gelfand, 1988) It is a severe, lifelong neurological disorder that usually strikes some time in the first two years of life and can cause sever impairment in language, cognition and communication. These conditions affect nearly one in a hundred people worldwide. Between four and thirteen times as many males as females are affected. The term autism was first described and name by Leo Kanner in 1944. The mysterious disability of autism is characterized by a peculiar emotional and intellectual detachment from other people and the common human world. In autistic children, an impaired capacity for communication and human relationships and a severely restricted range of activities and interests become evident in the first fe
Patients with autism fail to develop normal personal interactions in virtually every setting. The affected child fails to form the normal social contacts that are such an important part of human development. This impairment may be so severe that it even affects the bonding between a mother and an infant. Contrary to popular belief, many autistic children are infact capable of showing affection.. (Sigman, 1999) Even as the child develops, interaction with others continues to be abnormal. Affected behaviors can include eye contact, facial expressions, and body postures. There is usually an inability to develop normal peer and sibling relationships and the child often seems isolated. There may be little or no joy in interest in normal age-appropriate activities. Affected children do not seek out other children for play activities. In sever cases, the child may not even be aware of the presence of other individuals. Autistic individuals must be taught how to communicate and interact with others. Communication with individuals is usually severely impaired. What the child understands and what is actually spoken by the individual is significantly delayed or non-existent. Autistic children who are able to speak may be unable to initiate or participate in a two-way conversation. Frequently, the way in which an autistic child speaks is perceived as unusual. Their speech may seem to lack the normal emotion and sound flat or monotonous.
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Family Studies,
Society America,
Social Interaction,
Carol Gray,
Jaak Panksepp,
Communication Communication,
Leo Kanner,
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Conclusion Despite,
Behaviour Disorders,
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cause autism,
brothers sisters,
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Approximate Word count = 3163
Approximate Pages = 13 (250 words per page double spaced)
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