Participation in preschool activities of children with autistic spectrum disorder and comparison to typically developing children.
Preschoolers with autism join structured tasks eagerly yet trail far behind in social play.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Golos et al. (2022) watched preschoolers with and without autism during the school day.
They counted how often each child joined ADL, learning, and social activities.
The study showed where kids with autism joined in most and where they lagged.
What they found
Children with autism jumped into self-care and learning tasks more often than peers.
The same children were least likely to take part in social play or chat.
Structured settings boosted their overall frequency, but the social gap stayed.
How this fits with other research
van Timmeren et al. (2016) surveyed older kids and found the social gap continues past preschool.
Sasson et al. (2018) and Watkins et al. (2019) show we can close that gap.
Their brief, structured games and interest-based play raised peer bids for ASD preschoolers.
Bergmann et al. (2019) looked at physical activity and saw no group difference.
The seeming clash is simple: kids with autism move just as much, but they choose structured tasks over social ones.
Why it matters
You now know the social hole shows up early and is easy to spot.
Add peer-interaction goals to IEPs right away.
Use the Buddy Game or interest-based play for five to fifteen minutes a day.
These tiny, planned pushes fit into circle time or recess and lift social joins without cutting ADL success.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Participation is essential to children's development and is a major focus of intervention. This study aimed to describe the participation patterns of children with ASD, in comparison to typically developing (TD) children. METHODS: 70 preschoolers participated: 33 children with ASD, attending non-inclusive-education settings; and 37 TD children, attending mainstream educational settings. Two occupational therapists assessed their participation through structured observations in self-care activities, play, learning, and social participation areas; demographic and environmental questionnaires were also completed. RESULTS: In the ASD group, frequency of participation was found to be significantly higher in ADL and learning than in other areas; level of performance was found to be significantly lower in social participation than in other areas. The TD group scored significantly higher than did the ASD group in most areas and scales. Initial findings tentatively showed that a structured educational environment for children with ASD may increase participation frequency. CONCLUSIONS: The findings are consistent with recognized disabilities in play and social participation among children with ASD, and their limitations in participation, compared to their TD peers in most areas. Further studies are needed to evaluate additional psychometric properties of the different scales, and the impact of educational environments on participation.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2022 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2022.104252