• Utah State University

• COMD 4500

INTRODUCTION Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) can be classified as a complex and developmental condition that affects the social abilities and behaviors of individuals across the lifespan (Kogan et al., 2009). ASD is known as a spectrum disorder, because individuals can exhibit a wide variety of symptoms. Individuals with ASD engage in repetitive movements with their body, oftentimes act in inappropriate ways around others, and struggle to communicate effectively (Kogan et al., 2009). Individuals with ASD are very focused on one particular item or action or interest (Kogan et al., 2009). There are many factors that can contribute to ASD, including environmental and genetic factors (Mukherjee, 2017). It is emphasized that while there are distinct signs of one having ASD, the disorder manifests itself differently among individuals in terms of which primary symptoms one experiences and how severe these symptoms are (Mukherjee, 2017). Kogan et al. (2009) explain that the prevalence of ASD has greatly sky-rocketed over the last years, and there are different factors such as gender, socioeconomic status, and race contributing to the seen prevalence (Kogan et al., 2009). Mukherjee (2017) states that the prevalence is 1.1% in America among children. Saito et al. (2020) note that the incidence for kids five years and younger over three years was 1.31%. Mukherjee (2017) explains that the incidence has increased over the years most likely due to a better ability to recognize the signs of ASD. While ASD can affect all individuals, Mukherjee (2017) says that ASD primarily affects the population of younger children rather than adults. In a study conducted by Saito et al. (2020), the researchers found the ratio of boys diagnosed with ASD to girls diagnosed with ASD in Japan to be 2.2:1. Similarly, Kogan et al. (2009) found that males were four times more likely than AUTISM RESEARCH PAPER 3 females to be diagnosed with ASD. These research findings support the general fact that boys are diagnosed with ASD more than girls (Razjouyan et al., 2020). Mukherjee (2017) reasons that this gender difference could be due to boys having less of a “protective” barrier in their brains compared to girls. La Roche et al. (2018) note some important findings in regards to who is diagnosed with ASD and discrepancies regarding diagnosis. Those who come from a minority background are diagnosed less often and later on in life compared to white individuals (La Roche et al., 2018). SPEECH AND LANGUAGE CHARACTERISTICS For children to communicate effectively, they need to develop receptive and expressive language, and be able to use it appropriately. Individuals d