Cognitive behavioral therapy effectiveness for children with autism spectrum disorders

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Autism

The journal article that I reviewed for this assignment is entitled, "Cognitive-behavioral therapy for children with autism spectrum disorders"; it was authored by Rotheram-Fuller and MacMullen. This article examines the effect of "an educational model & #8230;widely used to treat anxiety, mood and psychotic disorders" known as (Rotheram-Fuller and MacMullen, 2011, p. 264) Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). The article's premise is that CBT would be efficacious in contending with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) because it considers -- and directly addresses, the cognitive aspects of the behavioral issues that many individuals on the autism spectrum experience. The aim of the study is to review literature that utilized CBT for various patients with ASD to determine how CBT could positively influence students with autism in school settings (Rotheram-Fuller and MacMullen, 2011, p. 263).

The article begins with a general explication ASD that includes the specific conditions that comprise it: "autism, high-functioning autism, Asperger's syndrome, and pervasive developmental disorders" (p. 263). One of the more insightful aspects of this introductory session is that it identifies the primary symptoms of ASD -- certainly for school children -- as difficulty with social interaction and general anxiety. The authors (2011) postulate that the latter tends to cause the former (p. 263). Implicit within this postulation is the fact that CBT could help reduce the feeling of anxiety about social interaction that many children experience.

The article also delves into the many mechanisms of CBT, which includes six steps in all: psychoeducation, somatic management, cognitive restructuring problem solving, exposure and relapse prevention (p. 264). Those steps are responsible for getting children to understand that there are solutions to their anxiety problems -- most of which involve relaxation -- and that by identifying and reconsidering the nature of anxiety causing events, they can ultimately control them and their responses to them. The crux of the research performed in this article includes an evaluation of five peer-reviewed articles that utilized CBT to help those with ASD in non-school settings. By analyzing those articles and their results, the authors were able to discern a number of different methodologies that are of value for utilizing CBT in classroom settings and in schools.

Specifically, the sort of adaptations that are needed to implement CBT in school settings involve communicating with children with ASD in a way that they understand. Doing so requires using words literally and can involve "scripts or comic strip conversations" (p. 265) so that children have a clear understanding of what is required of them and how CBT can benefit them. It is best to talk to them about the particular symptoms of anxiety they experience instead of anxiety itself, which might be too abstract for them to understand. Parental involvement is also a key aspect of implementing CBT in schools, because parents can reinforce concepts and positive behavior at home that students learn at school. Moreover, parents can ascertain how their own behaviors might lead to feelings of anxiety or social awkwardness which plagues children at school (p. 267). The chief finding that the article demonstrates regarding implementing CBT is that it can actually produce the most efficacy in school surroundings because that is the environment in which most children experience the negative aspects of ASF -- difficulty with social interaction and anxiety -- the most (p. 269). Therefore, in terms of helping them to overcome these manifestations of these conditions, it is necessary for them to do it in the place where they are tested the most and have the most opportunity to practice the skills needed to master these conditions. The authors conclude that CBT, if implemented using the aforementioned measures, should definitely assist children with ASD in school.