Abstract
Aim of the studyThis study was performed to investigate the effectiveness of play-based empathy training on social skills improvement in autistic students.Subject or material and methodsit was a preliminary study with a pretest-posttest design, and a control group. The statistical population consisted all students with autism spectrum disorders in Rasht city in academic year 2016-17. The sample included 8 students selected via convenience sampling method, put randomly into the experimental (N=4) and control group (N=4). After taking the pretest through Social Skills Assessment (stone et al, 2010), the experimental group participated in 18 sessions (45-minutes) of play-based empathy training, while the control group received no intervention. At the end, the posttest was performed on both groups.ResultsThe results showed that play-based empathy training could improve social skills in autistic students.DiscussionThe results provide support for the role of play-based empathy training in improving social skills and psychological health in students with Autism Spectrum Disorders.ConclusionsThe results provide support for the role of play-based empathy training in improving social skills and psychological health in students with Autism Spectrum Disorders.
Highlights
Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) as a complex of developmental and neurological disabilities manifested in the early stages of growth, are among the most controversial psychiatric disorders
Verbal/nonverbal communication, interests, activities and imagination ability are impaired in these children; no full agreement is adopted about causes, symptoms, etiology and treatment of this disorder [9]
Social skills ability to understand emotions Ability to initiate interactions Ability to maintain interactions Ability to respond to others Total social skills pre-test post-test pre-test post-test pre-test post-test pre-test post-test pre-test post-test
Summary
Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) as a complex of developmental and neurological disabilities manifested in the early stages of growth, are among the most controversial psychiatric disorders. Fahime Kazemi Abbas Abolghasemi2: 1Faculty of Humanities, Lahijan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Iran; 2Psychology Department, Faculty of Humanities, Gilan of University, Rasht, Iran [1]. Since this neurological-developmental disorder appears in early childhood, the brain fails to function properly in social behaviors and communication skills domain, and makes learning to communicate hard for sufferers. Autistic children have problems in verbal/nonverbal communication, social behaviors, and playing, and display repetitive behaviors [2]. Verbal/nonverbal communication, interests, activities and imagination ability are impaired in these children; no full agreement is adopted about causes, symptoms, etiology and treatment of this disorder [9]. Lack of guilty feeling and poor ability to recognize facial expressions lead these patients to make many mistakes in interpersonal interaction [11]
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