Advances in Autism Genetics - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages Certain psychological disorders occur in human beings due to specific situations or circumstances. However, often a child might begin to reflect certain abnormalities right from the childhood and is apparently born with the disorder. Some psychological disorders initially diagnosed in children encompass psychological and genetic components. Disorders caused by biological and psychological problems are usually identified early in life, usually within the first three years, though some of these problems are not identified till adulthood. Problems like Mental retardation, learning disorders, communication skills disorders and pervasive developmental disorders (such as autistic disorder) appear to have biological components. (Arndt, Stodgell, Rodier, 2005, 189-99)
Autism is a psychological disorder in children that causes them to behave or act in a way that is unique to the other normal kids. It arises from brain development problems. The problem can also be called Autistic spectrum disorder (ASD), Pervasive developmental disorder (PDD). The symptoms are usually observed when a child is very young, less than three years. In a nutshell, the signs observed are impaired social interaction and communications, repetitive and restricted behavioural patterns. (Rutter, 2005)
For such children, it is usually difficult to communicate with their surroundings in a normal manner. They often get stuck while speaking and find difficulty in expressing themselves via words. What makes them unique is their ways of reacting to certain situations. Their responses to touch, words and movements are often abnormal. A gentle touch might arouse discomfort while normal sounds may induce them to cover their ears.
Connecting with feelings is another problem for such children. While a normal child knows to smile when he is happy, a child with autism may not know and response in a normal way to normal circumstances.  ...Download file to see next pagesRead More