Show simple item record

dc.contributor.advisorColwell, Cynthia
dc.contributor.authorArezina, Clare Helene
dc.date.accessioned2012-07-22T19:12:33Z
dc.date.available2012-07-22T19:12:33Z
dc.date.issued2011--5-31
dc.date.submitted2012
dc.identifier.otherhttp://dissertations.umi.com/ku:11951
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1808/10010
dc.description.abstractThe purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of interactive music sessions on joint attention behaviors in preschool children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Joint attention, the ability to share attention to a stimulus with another person, is a key deficit in children with ASD. Lack of joint attention behaviors contributes to the limited social and verbal skills that characterize ASD; joint attention behaviors are the primary component of the early screening for ASD advocated by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Participants (N=6; 5 male, 1 female) were between 36 and 64 months old at the time of the study, and were recruited from the child development program at a large Midwestern university. All children were enrolled in classrooms with curricula designed specifically for children with ASD. A multiple treatment (within-subject) design was used, with three treatment conditions: interactive music therapy, non-music interactive play, and independent play. Participants experienced each condition six times for a total of 18 ten-minute sessions over a five-week period. Session order was randomized to control for order effect. Behavioral observation of videotaped sessions was used to determine both interaction (responding to a bid for joint attention) and requesting behavior (initiating joint attention). Visual analysis of data graphs and statistical analysis were used to determine treatment effect. Interaction behaviors were most frequent in the interactive music therapy sessions, with less interaction in non-music interactive play sessions, and much less interaction during independent play. Although the difference between was less significant for the two children with the best interaction skills prior to the study, overall, the between-subject ANOVA revealed a significant difference in interaction among all three conditions (F [2, 105] = 62.028, p < 0.001; Bonferroni p < 0.01 between all conditions). Requesting behavior was highly variable across sessions, regardless of treatment condition, although requesting was generally higher in the interactive conditions than in the independent play sessions. Implications, limitations, and opportunities for further research are discussed.
dc.format.extent72 pages
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherUniversity of Kansas
dc.rightsThis item is protected by copyright and unless otherwise specified the copyright of this thesis/dissertation is held by the author.
dc.subjectSpecial education
dc.subjectEarly childhood education
dc.subjectBehavioral sciences
dc.subjectAutism
dc.subjectAutism spectrum disorder
dc.subjectJoint attention
dc.subjectMusic therapy
dc.subjectPreschool
dc.subjectSocial communication
dc.titleThe Effect of Interactive Music Therapy on Joint Attention Skills in Preschool Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
dc.typeThesis
dc.contributor.cmtememberClair, Alicia A.
dc.contributor.cmtememberNeidert, Pamela L
dc.thesis.degreeDisciplineMusic Education & Music Therapy
dc.thesis.degreeLevelM.M.E.
kusw.oastatusna
kusw.oapolicyThis item does not meet KU Open Access policy criteria.
dc.rights.accessrightsopenAccess


Files in this item

Thumbnail

This item appears in the following Collection(s)

Show simple item record