Understanding & Caring for Individuals with Autism

Course overview

Autism may be among the most complex, diverse, and challenging of all mental conditions. This comprehensive 6-hour INR Webinar will present the current science on the diagnosis, course, and effective treatments of autism in order to help understand this often bewildering brain disorder. The presentation will begin with an understanding of the history of autism and why autism is currently thought by many to be a neurodivergent spectrum condition and not a mental disorder. The development of the current DSM-5 criteria for diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder will be described, and methods of early and later diagnosis will be presented. This will include an analysis of reasons for the recent increase in autism diagnoses and a discussion of beliefs about the causes of autism that appear to have no scientific support. Research findings about the causes of autism will be presented, along with reasons why the condition affects more males than females. This live webinar will also address the wide variety of strengths and deficits seen in people across the autism spectrum, including individuals with profound disabilities as well as others who are highly successful and may have contributed to major technological innovations in society. There will also be discussion of rare individuals with autism who have extraordinary abilities in areas such as mathematics and memory, known as prodigious savants. The course will cover the methods and effectiveness of early childhood treatments and supports for autism, including applied behavior analysis, early parent-mediated treatments, and sensory interventions. Special techniques for helping older children, adolescents, and adults with autism will also be addressed.