Abstract
Sensory perceptual experiences are now directly associated with the diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Given that autism is a heterogenous disorder, literature abounds in evidences that report varied sensory perceptual issues affecting daily lives of individuals with autism. One question that motivated the current study is “Why do they report to have varied sensory profiles?” The answer lies in the way their bodies interact with the world around them—theory of embodiment in cognitive linguistics. Thirteen children with autism were observed through SPCR (Sensory Profile Checklist Revised (Bogdashina, 2003)) against 20 categories, which Bogdashina (2003) refers to as their bodily resources. Out of seven modalities, only three—vision, hearing and proprioception—were studied for current study. The findings were consistent with the embodiment thesis offered by cognitive linguistics—human beings are embodied beings.
Highlights
The latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders classifies Autism Spectrum Disorder as a neurodevelopmental disorder that is characterized by following dyad of impairments: limited and affected social communication and interaction; and limited repetitive patterns of interests, behaviors and activities (DSM-5TM, 2013)
The DSM-5 pronounced sensory behvaiors of individuals with autism as directly associated with the diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and besides different psychometric scales, sensory and perceptual checklists and/or questionnaires are being employed as tools to assess sensory behaviors (Elwin, Schröder, Ek, Wallsten, & Kjellin, 2017), (Neil, Green, & Pellicano, 2017) so that autistic-like traits are identified and appropriate intervention strategies are suggested
If we look at the visual embodiment of Az, Wn, An, Ma, Rn, they seemed to have 20% visual gestalt; the in-depth comparison shows that all have different experiences that lead to visual gestalt—Az, Ma, An and Rn notice tiny changes in the environment; Wn does not recognize familiar environment if approached from different direction
Summary
The latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders classifies Autism Spectrum Disorder as a neurodevelopmental disorder that is characterized by following dyad of impairments: limited and affected social communication and interaction (both verbal and non-verbal); and limited repetitive patterns of interests, behaviors and activities (DSM-5TM, 2013). With the refinement of the core features of the disorder, the sensory experiences of individuals with autism received increased attention—generally and with specific reference to the impact these behaviors/experiences have on the daily lives of people with autism. Dunn (2007) reiterates the environment and the body as the primary sources of sensory input to the brain, and asserts the relationship between sensory processing and human behavior. He further explains sensory processing as a neurological process and the outset of sensory experiences as “neurological thresholds”—the personal range of these sensory thresholds (for noticing and responding) vary from person to person and the nature of these thresholds (low and high) may differ for each sensory input Individuals with autism are reported to face difficulties with processing sensory stimuli rendering their sensory experiences to be heterogeneous in nature
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