Abstract
Few studies have longitudinally investigated the development of the motor function in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In this chapter, the author investigated trends in how the development of motor coordination ability is closely related to motor functions in children with ASD. The participants were children enrolled in a special education school for persons with developmental disabilities in Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan. Among them, the study targeted 35 children who took the Body Coordination Test (BCT) continuously for more than three years. Although there were individual differences, the average score on the BCT increased with age. In particular, children with ASD showed moderate development, even during adolescence, when typical children experienced the plateau effect. The results suggest that children with ASD have great educational potential in adolescence.
TopBackground
Impaired motor function in children with ASD implies many movement problems throughout their lives, including crawling during early childhood (Creak, 1961). In the 1970s, after the cause of ASD was attributed to a functional and organic brain disorder, the number of research reports addressing the movement of the children with ASD began to gradually increase.
Studies in the field of neurophysiology have verified that children with ASD have impaired functions related to voluntary human movements, such as decreased muscle tone, poor coordination, the appearance of physical clumsiness (Coleman, 1976), stereotypic behaviors (e.g., sideways, hand-holding, and toe walking; Tsuchiya & Seki, 1977), sensorimotor coordination disorder (Ornitz & Ritvo, 1976), and obstacles in movement and movement planning (Ayres, 1973). Currently, it is widely known that children with ASD have several motor-function-related problems, in addition to issues with interpersonal relationships and communication.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Motor Coordination Ability: Ability to operate various parts of the body (e.g., limbs and trunk), such as skips and gallops, to create harmonious movements.
Movement Education and Therapy: A teaching method devised by Frostig (1970), one of the theorists of American perceptual movement, that supports children who have problems in visual perception, such as learning disabilities through therapy that incorporates exercise.
Longitudinal Study: A method of research that continuously investigates changes in numerical values and ways of thinking for a specific target person, and summarizes changes in data over a certain period of time.
Assessment of Motor Function: An evaluation method for measuring motor function. Generally, strategies such as evaluation by observation and evaluation by measurement are used.
Body Coordination Test: An inspection method developed by Kiphard and Schilling (1974). The Japanese version was standardized by Kobayashi et al. (1989). It enables the evaluation of motor coordination ability, which is closely related to voluntary human movements.
Physical Exercise: Refers to all athletic support provided at school, including physical education classes.
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): ASD is among the developmental disorders that cause difficulties in interpersonal relationships and have features such as strong commitment. The cause is considered to be a slight abnormality in brain function.