The Relationship Between Children With ASDs’ Sensory Processing Patterns and Their Activity Participation Patterns

PURPOSE: We sought (1) to investigate the relationships between children with ASDs’ sensory processing patterns and their participation in home and community activities and (2) to investigate the number and variety of activities that children with ASD participate in during the year.

BACKGROUND: Sensory processing impacts children with ASDs’ participation in daily life (Tomchek, Little, & Dunn, 2015). Current evidence on the impact of sensory processing on participation in children with ASD addresses certain participation areas like leisure and education, while other areas of occupations like activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) remain underinvestigated.

DESIGN: The current study used a correlational survey design to investigate the relationships between sensory processing patterns (collected retrospectively) of children with ASD and caregiver-reported activity participation patterns (collected in the current study).

METHOD: The study included children with ASD ages 4–13 yr who were recruited from a community program designed for children with ASD. All children were within the age range at the time their parents completed the Sensory Profile (SP) Caregiver Questionnaire (Dunn, 1999). Parents of children with ASD served as informants in this study and provided information about their children’s patterns of participation in different activities. Measures included the SP Caregiver Questionnaire, the Home and Community Activities Scale (HCAS; Dunst, Hamby, Trivette, Raab, & Bruder, 2000), and a demographic information form. An online survey including the HCAS and demographic information form was sent via email to 74 caregivers of children with ASD who had previously completed the SP for their child with ASD. The survey was open for 3 wk before analysis. Correlational analysis included two-tailed Spearman’s rank-order correlations using the SP quadrants’ summary scores and HCAS activity groups’ mean scores for all participants who completed the survey. Total number of HCAS activities was calculated for each child. Activity groups’ mean scores were used to determine which activity groups children with ASD in the sample participated in more frequently.

RESULTS: Seventeen caregivers filled out surveys for their children with ASD. Children with ASD were 16 boys (94.1%) and one girl (5.9%) ages 5–13 yr, the majority being White (70.6%). Results showed strong positive correlations (r _s = .70, p = .002) between Seeking quadrant summary scores and mean participation in neighborhood and social activities, and moderate positive correlations (r _s = .5, p = .04) between Registration quadrant summary scores and mean participation in routine errands. Total number of HCAS activities for each child ranged from 25 to 60, with a mean of 49. HCAS activity groups’ mean scores showed that children with ASD in our sample participated more in parent–child household activities and routine errands compared with other HCAS activity groups’ mean scores.

CONCLUSION: This study showed that sensory processing was significantly related to participation in home and community activities of children with ASD. Additional research about the impact of sensory processing on participation in ASD is needed using more robust scientific methods.

IMPACT STATEMENT: Parents need our support to identify ways their children can be successful in neighborhood and social activities. This study clarifies areas of strength for community participation so families can work toward increased independence as their children grow to adulthood.

References

Dunn, W. (1999). The Sensory Profile manual. San Antonio: Psychological Corporation.

Dunst, C. J., Hamby, D., Trivette, C. M., Raab, M., & Bruder, M. B. (2000). Everyday family and community life and children’s naturally occurring learning opportunities. Journal of Early Intervention, 23, 151–164. https://doi.org/10.1177/10538151000230030501

Tomchek, S., Little, L., & Dunn, W. (2015). Sensory pattern contributions to developmental performance in children with autism spectrum disorder. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 69, 6905185040. https://doi.org/10.5014/ajot.2015.018044