Autism Spectrum Disorders

In ""Autism Spectrum Disorders"", Dr. James A. Mulick shows his approach to counseling children with autism and their parents. Autism spectrum disorder, which includes autism and Asperger syndrome, is characterized by impairment in communication skills, social interactions, and repetitive patterns of behavior. Dr. Mulick works with families with autistic children to help them handle this disorder. In this session, Dr. Mulick works with a mother of a 10-year-old boy who has been diagnosed with autism. Dr. Mulick uses his behavioral - educational approach to assess the present situation and makes several intervention suggestions, including exposure, distraction, and reinforcement. About the Approach: Dr. Mulick's approach to working with parents emphasizes both family advocacy and alliance building and behavioral intervention. During most characteristically brief family encounters in pediatric psychology settings, parents are looking for an indication that they can be helped to solve behavior and learning problems that they may be having with their children; and they are seeking reassurance that the therapist understands their love and very special relationship with their children. Because child learning and behavior problems occur and consequently must be solved in the natural environment, rather than in the therapist's office during 50-minute sessions, they must ultimately be solved by the people in the child's natural environment. They also must be solved in real time. Dr. Mulick tries to convey these messages as he gathers information about parent motivation and functional relations affecting the child's behavior for development of an initial treatment plan. Further observation of the child in home and community settings and focused parent training in behavior change procedures constitute the next steps following the initial parental clinical interview.