The deployment,training and teacher relationships of teaching assistants supporting pupils with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) in mainstream secondary schools

Growing numbers of pupils with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) are attending mainstream schools, and increasing numbers of additional staff are being deployed to support them. Recent research has cast doubt on the effectiveness of this support, by highlighting issues relating to deployment and training, and to relationships with class teachers. This study, conducted by Wendy Symes, who is a Research Associate at the University of Manchester, and Neil Humphrey, who is Professor of Education in the same university, interviewed 15 teaching assistants supporting pupils with ASD in four mainstream secondary schools in the north‐west of England to explore these issues. Analysis yielded several key findings. The majority of teaching assistants worked with just one pupil at a time and worked in a variety of lessons. Their role primarily involved helping pupils to stay focused and follow instructions. Many teaching assistants had no experience of ASD prior to starting their job. The amount of training received varied, but all felt that generic training about ASD was not helpful. A lack of time for joint planning with teachers was raised as a key concern. These findings are discussed in relation to the growing literature on inclusive education for pupils with ASD.     

Becoming Fathers: Initial Exploration of a Support Program for New Fathers

Emerging fathers experience a variety of stressors, including identity and role transitions, changes in their relationships, and challenges in developing caregiving skills. Increasing expectations for father involvement in childcare are emphasizing the importance of the father role, but social supports for new fathers remain scarce. Nineteen expectant and new fathers participated in a pilot 5-week group intervention aimed at improving stress coping and involvement attitudes using a combination of mindfulness practices and skill-building for parenting and partner communication. We administered surveys pre- and postintervention to assess efficacy in the areas of stress, depressive symptoms, father involvement attitudes, and mindfulness. Within-participant differences were compared across participants as well as examining individual reliable change. Results indicated initial reductions in stress and depressive symptoms and increases in the mindfulness constructs of nonjudgment and nonreactivity. No significant changes were found in father involvement attitudes. Perinatal intervention specific to fathers holds promise as an underexplored avenue for supporting families across the transition to parenthood.     

Adult mental health outcomes of child sexual abuse survivors born at extremely low birth weight

The high prevalence of child sexual abuse (CSA) is concerning, particularly as survivors are at increased risk for multiple adverse outcomes, including poor mental health across the lifespan. Children born at an extremely low birth weight (ELBW; <1000 g) and who experience CSA may be a group that is especially vulnerable to psychopathology later in life. However, no research has considered the mental health risks associated with being born at ELBW and experiencing CSA. In this study, we investigated the mental health of 179 ELBW survivors and 145 matched normal birth weight (NBW; >2500 g) participants at ages 22–26 and 29–36. At age 22–26, CSA was associated with increased odds of clinically significant internalizing (OR = 7.32, 95% CI: 2.31–23.23) and externalizing (OR = 4.65, 95% CI: 1.11–19.51) problems among ELBW participants exposed to CSA compared to those who did not, though confidence intervals were wide. At age 29–36, CSA was linked to increased odds of any current (OR = 3.43, 95% CI: 1.08–10.87) and lifetime (OR = 7.09, 95% CI: 2.00–25.03) non-substance use psychiatric disorders, however, this did not hold after adjustment for covariates. Statistically significant differences in mental health outcomes were not observed in NBW participants exposed to CSA compared to NBW participants who were not exposed. Survivors of significant perinatal adversity who are also exposed to CSA may be at higher risk for psychopathology through the fourth decade of life.     

Eating disorder prevention initiatives for athletes: A review

A substantial amount of evidence suggests that collegiate and elite athletes involved in weight-sensitive sports are at greater risk of developing eating disorders (EDs) than the general population. With the limited effectiveness of treatment for EDs, prevention of EDs has been broadly considered in the literature. The present paper reviewed the existing literature on ED prevention programmes for athletes in order to determine the current status of prevention programmes and recommend future directions. The available literature suggests that selective, primary interventions with multiple targets and an interactive multimodal approach appear most effective. Current challenges in the field, including lack of longitudinal research, hesitation by the sport community to be involved in ED research and poor cross-field communication and collaboration, are also explored. The lack of dissemination of evidence-based prevention programmes and the simultaneous promotion of prevention programmes that have not yet been empirically examined are also discussed. Based on these observations future directions are recommended.     

自闭症谱系障碍儿童睡眠问题的研究:回顾及思考

睡眠问题在自闭症谱系障碍儿童中有高发生率,与他们的核心特征存在错综复杂的关联.睡眠问题属于失眠症的范畴,潜在病原包括神经生物学、心理及行为和家庭环境等因素,对儿童的影响体现在社会交往与沟通、行为表现及认知和个人成长及家庭等方面,现有治疗措施主要有行为干预、药理治疗和其他疗法,最后对自闭症谱系障碍儿童教育与康复提出几点建议.     

Getting good at small talk: student-directed learning of social conversation skills

For students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), learning social skills is an intricate but essential task to facilitate social inclusion and participation. Limited research is available on social skills interventions for adolescents with ASD and intellectual disabilities (ID). This article presents a case study that illustrates how the Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction was used to improve self-chosen social conversation skills in a Norwegian 14-year old student with ASD and mild ID. This case study illustrates that, also for students with ASD and ID, giving them the opportunity to set personally relevant goals may improve their autonomous motivation, thereby increasing the likelihood of goal attainment.     

自闭症谱系障碍儿童家长参与课题研究:影响因素和改进策略

近年来,人们越来越多地推动自闭症儿童家长有意义地参与科学研究.这种参与式研究能够更好地满足自闭症谱系障碍儿童及其家庭的评估和干预需求.从自闭症儿童自身特征、家庭因素、研究课题本身等方面分析影响家长参与课题研究的因素,基于对影响因素的综合分析,分别从家长及研究者层面提出相关对策建议,以促进家长更积极、更深入地参与课题研究...     

Symptoms of common mental disorders and related stressors in Danish professional football and handball

The aim of the study was twofold, namely (i) to determine the prevalence of symptoms of common mental disorders (CMDs) among current and retired professional football and handball players and (ii) to explore the relationship of psychosocial stressors with the outcome measures under study. A total of 1155 players were enrolled in an observational study based on a cross-sectional design. Questionnaires based on validated scales were set up and distributed among current and retired professional football and handball players by the Danish football and handball players’ union. In professional football, the highest prevalence (4 weeks) of symptoms of CMDs was 18% and 19% for anxiety/depression among current and retired players, respectively. In professional handball, the highest prevalence (4 weeks) of symptoms of CMDs was 26% and 16% for anxiety/depression among current and retired players, respectively. For both the current and retired professional football and handball players, a higher number of severe injuries and recent adverse life events (LE) were related to the presence of symptoms of CMD. Players exposed to severe injuries and/or recent adverse LE were 20–50% times more likely to report symptoms of CMD. The results suggest that it is possible to recognize the population of professional athletes that are more likely to develop symptoms of CMD. This could create the opportunity to intervene preventively on athletes that suffered from severe injury and/or recent adverse LE that could lead to a faster and safer recovery and psychological readiness to return to play.     

降体重对运动员健康和运动能力的损害及预防

许多体育的参与者,如摔跤、体操和轻量级选手,试图通过降体重来达到最大相对肌肉力量.过快的降体重则通过饥饿和脱水等方式,这样有可能影响运动员的力量和耐力.该研究阐述了如果进行不健康的降体重可能有害于运动员的身体健康和运动成绩.对健康的降体重方式进行了讨论.     

独立学院特殊群体学生心理健康影响因素及其对策分析

个体的心理健康会受到遗传、环境以及个体因素间的影响。如今随着社会的发展和就业形势等的改变,大学生中出现了越来越多的有心理问题的学生。本文旨在对某独立学院30例患有不同程度精神障碍的学生的心理健康的影响因素进行分析,回溯分析引起独立学院大学生心理问题的主要原因,从而给独立学院大学生的心理健康教育和管理工作提供指导,预防心理危机事件的发生。