Symptoms Related to Autism - Research Proposal Example

Research Proposal: Autism and Pet Therapy Inserts His/Her Inserts Inserts Introduction Research involving the study of Autism has become very common in modern times due to the increase in its prevalence, the limits the disease places on the individuals suffering from it plus their families, and the need for more services and resource to support those afflicted. There are various opinions on the cause of autism; however, no conclusive reason has been presented. According to Heward (2006), the disease was best described by Dr. Leo Kanner in 1943 when he held that autism is a neurological brain disorder that affects children before the age of 3 and persists into adulthood. He further added that the disease targets those areas of the brain responsible for social integration, language, abstract and creative thinking. The symptoms of autism include social impairment, poor communication skills (both verbal and non-verbal), and through repetitive, stereotyped and repetitive behaviour (APA, 2000). Individuals suffering from autism usually struggle with stressful and changing environments, and are also very sensitive to environmental stimuli. Children with autism have trouble interacting with others and people usually have a bizarre reaction when encountering them. On top of this, traditional psychotherapeutic and educational interventions have for a long time failed to present consistent improvements in children suffering from autism. Since conventional forms of intervention are failing to provide reliable and successful intervention, it is important to seek other innovative forms of autism management. This paper seeks to look at pet therapy and the manner in which it can be used to detect and manage symptoms related to autism. 1.1. Variables For this study, the independent variable will be pet therapy while the dependent variable will be autistic-related symptoms. The pet therapy applied will depend on the types of pets used in a chosen institution while autistic-related symptoms will be taken as a whole i.e. change in symptoms over time. 1.2. Definition of terms As explained above autism is a neurological brain disorder characterized by communication impairment, social impairment and repetitive, restricted or stereotyped behaviour. The disease manifests itself before a child attains three years of age and persists into old age. The disorder is one of three disorders that comprise the autism spectrum (ASD). As of 2012, the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that 20 per 1000 children have autism in the United States (Blumberg, 2013). Pet therapy is the use of animals in managing certain psychoneurotic disorders. The practice began in the early 1960s when Boris Levinson, a child psychologist noticed that the children under his care responded positively when he performed therapy sessions with his dog present (Chandler, 2005). 1.3. Assumptions and hypothesis In this study, it will be assumed that the effect of drugs on the children does not vary and that the drugs do not have an impact on how the children respond to pet therapy. The main hypothesis of this study is that since dogs can detect chemical changes in humans, they can be able to detect the onset of autistic symptoms in children. The paper also holds that the relationship between people and animals is essentially what helps autistic children respond better to pets than humans in social situations. 2. Theoretical Framework The treatment for children with autism has in the past included pharmacotherapy, education and structured environment programs, and behaviour modification (Fine, 2006). Due to the increase of autism incidences and the need for better treatment methods, a variety of innovative treatments have been developed. These treatments, however lack sufficient empirical evidence as to their effectiveness, but have been the subject of many studies. At the moment, some of the accepted treatment techniques being utilized include medication, applied behavioural analysis, speech and language therapy, and early intensive intervention (Heward, 2006). Animal Assisted Therapy (pet therapy) has risen in popularity in the treatment of autism and research has proven that it can reach children in a way that other forms of therapy have been unable to. It has been shown that pets have a way of meeting the therapeutic and emotional needs of people (Levinson, 1972). Pets offer people a variety of advantages such as improving social interacting, lowering blood pressure, reducing stress, and shifting the focus of attention. The advantages of pets to people form the framework of our study. The paper’s main focus is the manner in which pets alleviate symptoms of autism. 2.1. Concepts “Pet Therapy” or Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT) is a type of therapy that utilizes animals for treatment purposes. The main aim of pet therapy is utilize animals to improve the patient’s emotional, social or cognitive functioning. The ability for humans to form attachment with animals is the premise with which we study its impacts on autistic patients. Autism is a neurological disorder that affects patients before the age of three and is characterized by poor cognitive functioning, social and emotional impairment and repetitive and restricted functioning. We intend to look at the impact of animal therapy in managing and treating these symptoms. 3. Literature Review This study shall first consider the human-animal bond and the ways that animals help people in day to day life. Bustad and Hines (1984) argued that pet therapy is founded on the belief that there is a natural tendency for humans and animals to form relationships. E. O. Wilson coined the term Biophilia in 1984 to explain this relationship. As Chandler (2005) notes, the Biophilia hypothesis argues that human have an inbuilt drive to be attracted by, and to be attentive to other species, namely the activities and behaviour of other animals. Studies have postulated that this inborn tendency is the cause behind the development of a quick rapport between clients and animals used in therapy (Serpell, 2006). The second aspect we shall consider is the relationship between children and animals. Studies have shown that children need protection and security during the early formative years (Heward, 2006). We shall review the literature on this subject and then apply how this manifests in those children suffering from autism. 3.1. Primary and Secondary Sources This study will utilize both primary and secondary sources. The use of primary sources (first-hand knowledge) will be mainly used for validation purposes where experts will be used to confirm certain aspects. Our main focus will be on secondary source, sources from previous research concerning autism and animal assisted therapy. Data from these studies will be collected, grouped and analysed to present a clear picture of the subject. 4. Methods 4.1. Description This research is a qualitative study and will tries to find out whether pet therapy can help in early detection of autism. The study will also analyze how pet therapy helps to alleviate symptoms associated with autism in children. 4.2. Study Design This research is a qualitative study and will focus on children who do not take medication but are involved in one or more forms of animal therapy. The study will focus on pet therapy that utilizes trained dogs to test the hypothesis. Autistic children will be observed in a setting in which they interact with the animals and changes in temperament, type of symptoms attacks and reaction of the pets during symptom attacks will be recorded. This study is mainly interested in how pets can help in early detection of symptoms therefore, the manner in which the dogs react when the child shows symptoms of autism is very important. The study will also observe the reaction of these trained dogs towards children who are not autistic. This group will be our control sample in analyzing the reaction of dogs to autistic symptoms. We intend to understand how these pets can differentiate an autistic child from a one who is not sick. In doing this, we can prove that the dogs can be able to detect the onset of symptoms in children. 4.3. Rationale The rationale for using dogs in this study is because various studies have proved that canines can detect the onset of certain symptoms on individuals (Chandler, 2005). These studies claim that dogs can be able to detect chemical changes in the body before the onset of a given symptom (i.e. seizures). We thus hold that if dogs can detect chemical changes that occur when a child starts developing autism, one has to understand how they react so that they can diagnose the child. We use trained dogs since we are sure that they have interacted with autistic children for a long time and have developed ingrained reactions to the onset of symptoms. These same dogs will be kept in the care of children who are healthy so that we can set criteria to rate normal reactions from reactions to the diseases. 4.4. Sample Size In this study we shall utilize 100 children. Of this, 75 will have been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) within the past one year while 25 subjects will be healthy children. We shall carry out random sampling by posting fliers inviting parents with children suffering from autism to participate in the study. Criteria for inclusion will be: (1) having a primary diagnosis of ASD confirmed by formal evaluation, (2) below 15 years of age, (3) ≤ 3 years experience with pet therapy (4) do not use symptom suppressing drugs. The exclusion criteria will be those autistic patients who have been using symptom suppressing medication. Those children who are afraid of dogs or are allergic will also be excluded. Those children who have received less than 8 sessions will be closely monitored in order to find out if the dogs react different to new subjects. The study will be carried out at a pet therapy center that utilizes dogs and caters for those children who are not under medication. The pet therapy center should allow maximum interaction between the dogs and the children but in such a way that a child does not become too attached to the dogs. We need a dog that has constant reactions to symptoms regardless of the child. Data will be collected by the observers. The main details that will be collected include the child’s reaction to the dogs, change in the child (how does the symptoms manifest once pet therapy begins), and finally, reaction of the dogs to the onset of symptoms. 4.5. Data Collection The details being observed will be entered on a structured weigfted list that covers the three principle observations. All the details being collected will enable us to better understand the disease and how the pets react to a child exhibiting autistic symptoms. Healthy children will be given a chance to interact with the dogs once during the research period. During this time, the behavior of the dogs will be noted ad recorded to act as litmus for healthy status. 4.6. Protection of human subjects The study will utilize children and thus it is important to obtain consent. Since most of these children are too young to offer consent, we shall have to obtain it from their parents with the promise that at no time will the study be carried out without the presence of the parent. The study also utilizes dogs which may be harmful to children. It is for this reason we have selected a center with trained dogs that have been used for more than 2 years. The child’s ease towards dogs is a condition for being included thus preventing endangering or distressing the child. 5. Data Analysis The data collected will be grouped with respect to what they explain. We shall compare the reaction of the dogs to autistic children with the reactions to healthy children. This offers us a basis in which we can test our hypothesis. The most important data will be the reactions of the dogs to the onset of different symptoms. We shall group reaction of the dogs to various symptoms such as social withdrawal, repetitive and stereotype behaviours plus difficulties in communication (this may be a measure of frustration when a child needs something but is unable to articulate. We shall then analyse the data to determine if there is a notable correlation between behaviour of the dogs and onset of autistic symptoms 6. Conclusion and Applicability Autism is a neurological disorder that affects more and more child nowadays. Studies have been carried out on the applicability of pet therapy and its advantages. This paper seeks to find out how pet therapy helps in managing symptoms and early detection of autism. As it stands, many parents and in some cases health workers simply do not understand the advantages of pet therapy in the treatment of autism. In some circumstances, parents seek extreme form of pet therapy, such as dolphins or horses, in treating autism that they neglect simple pets such as dogs. This study will offer one of the first look on how pet therapy can be utilized for early detection of ASD. This will help both parents and healthcare professionals as it will enable early treatment as well as notify relevant parties to changes related to the onset of autism or autistic symptoms occur in a child. This paper will also look at pet therapy in all its forms and present a better picture that parents can understand in order to decide what form of pet therapy to engage their children in. The paper is important in the nursing field as it will seek to increase awareness of pet therapy and provide data important to back our findings. With the increase in health care costs, parents can finally understand the need to engage in other forms of treatment to manage the various symptoms associated with autism. The paper is just one among some in the field of pet therapy and will enable future researchers to look into manners in which traditional therapies can be combined with pet therapy to yield a comprehensive therapy that can be accepted and recognized. The paper will be very helpful in managing autism symptoms, behaviour modification therapy and also speech and language development therapies. 7. References American Psychiatric Association (APA). (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author. Blumberg, S. (2013). Changes in Prevalence of Parent-reported Autism Spectrum Disorder in School-aged U.S. Children: 2007 to 2011–2012. National Health Statistics Reports Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr065.pdf [Accessed 14 March 2014] Bustad, L.K. & Hines, L. (1984). Historical perspectives of the human-animal bond. American Behavioral Scientist. 47(17): 15-16 Chandler, C.K. (2005). Animal assisted Therapy in counseling. Routledge, NY: Taylor and Francis Group. Fine, A. (Ed) (2006). Handbook on animal-assisted Therapy: Theoretical foundations and guidelines for practice (2nd ed.). San Diego: Academic Press. Heward, W. L. (2006). Exceptional children: An introduction to special education (8th ed.). New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc. Levinson, B.M. (1972). Pets and Human Development. Springfield, IL: Thomas. Serpell, J.A. (2006). “Animal-assisted interventions in historical perspective.” In A.H. Fine (ed.) Handbook on animal assisted therapy (2nd ed.) San Diego, CA: Academic Press. Read More