Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1 Ph.D. in Psychology and Education of Exceptional Children, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran
2 Professor, Department of Psychology and Education of Exceptional Children, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran
3 Associate Professor, Department of Psychology and Education of Exceptional Children, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
The present study was conducted with the aim of determining the effect of a participatory games training program on stereotyped behaviors of children with autism spectrum disorder. The research method was semi-experimental with a pre-test-post-test design with a control group. The statistical population of this research included all male children in the age range of 8 to 12 years with autism spectrum disorder in the treatment, rehabilitation, and educational centers of Tehran in 2017. Among these, 20 boys with autism spectrum disorder were selected using an available sampling method and randomly assigned to two experimental (10 people) and control (10 people) groups. The Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised (RBS-R, Bodfish et al, 2000) was used to evaluate stereotyped behaviors. The experimental group received the Participatory games training program in 10 sessions of 45 minutes over 2 months, while the control group did not receive such training. At the end, both experimental and control groups were evaluated again. The data were analyzed using covariance analysis. The results showed that the participatory games training program has reduced the stereotyped behaviors of children with autism spectrum disorder. Therefore, experts and play therapists are advised to use participatory games in the rehabilitation and educational program of children with autism spectrum disorder.
Keywords
Main Subjects
)