Assessing challenging behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorders: a review.
A common covarying group of behaviors with ASD are self-injury, aggression, noncompliance, and stereotypies. These problems and related challenging behaviors are problematic in that they are physically dangerous and can impede learning and access to normal activities. Additionally, they require a considerable amount of resources, and compound the difficulty in treating core ASD symptoms. Despite the high profile challenging behaviors present in this population, there has not been a great deal of research regarding assessment, identification, and monitoring of such difficulties. This review covers available empirical based methods for assessing these behaviors. A discussion is provided of potential avenues for future research and clinical practice which is urgently needed for ASD children at this time.
Matson
Johnny L
JL
Department of Psychology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA. Johnmatson@aol.com
Nebel-Schwalm
Marie
M
D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000145:classification* / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000145:classification* / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis*; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests