Abstract
The problems that autistic individuals show in the areas of interpersonal relationships and language have been long recognized and are well documented. Nonverbal behaviors and their implications for overall affective and cognitive development have received far less scrutiny. The purposes of this paper are to investigate the significance of movement behaviors in the differential diagnosis of autism, to present a newly developed assessment tool and observational procedure for gathering data in nonverbal areas of concern and to illustrate appropriate statistical measures which can be used to determine whether there are specific nonverbal behaviors which distinguish autistic individuals from other groups of severely disabled persons. The results show that studies of nonverbal behaviors are important in that autistic persons show a variety of anomalies, but that one must be very selective in using nonverbal behaviors for differential diagnoses since individuals with other developmental disorders also exhibit deviations in a variety of movement areas. The number of problems and the degree to which they are exhibited suggest that dance/movement therapy is an appropriate intervention for several developmentally disabled populations.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
