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Awareness that thoughts cannot always be controlled develops gradually. The aim of this research was to determine the level and quality of preschoolers' understanding of intrusive thoughts, relative to their gender, age, emotion preceding those thoughts, thoughts belonging (oneself or another), and their dividedness (capability to simultaneously think about more things). The sample included 71 children. The assessment was based on the Task of understanding intrusive thoughts and emotions they cause, which consisted of two stories -with a happy and a sad event. Regarding the level of understanding of intrusive thoughts, the results show that participants were more successful with the story with the sad event, than with the story with the happy event. Age was correlated with success only in the story with the happy event. There were no differences in understanding of intrusive thoughts relative to gender and thoughts belonging. Most of the participants showed an understanding that thoughts could not always be controlled willingly. Participants more often responded that the character did not want to proceed thinking about the sad, rather than the happy event. Almost all participants considered that the character could not think about two things simultaneously. The results show a great variety in children's understanding of others' feelings, their causes, and consequences. Regarding the role that the understanding of intrusive thoughts has in cognitive and emotional regulation, the results of this research point to the importance of quantitative and qualitative analysis of the understanding of intrusive thoughts at the preschool age.

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between sex, empathy, systemizing, and autistic traits in primary school children. The sample included 353 primary school children aged 7-11 years. The children’s versions of the Empathy Quotient – EQ-C, Systemizing Quotient – SQ-C, and children’s version of the Autism Spectrum Quotient - AQ– C were used as primary outcome measures. Girls had higher empathy, while boys had higher autistic traits. Empathy and systemizing were moderately positively correlated, but both were good predictors of autistic traits. The effect of sex on autistic traits was mediated by empathy as well as by the difference between systemizing and empathy. These results partially support assumptions of the Empathizing-Systemizing theory and the Hypersystemizing theory of autism, which should be further evaluated in a population with the autism spectrum disorder.

Play is a natural state in which children enjoy and practice various cognitive, social, and motor skills. Play observations in the natural learning environment helps practitioners and researchers to develop appropriate intervention. Previous research based on observations in the natural learning environment indicates a large gap between the behavior of children with autism and that of their peers. Although autism occurs relatively frequently in twins, research on their play interaction is scarce. The aim of this research was to determine the dominant type of play and interaction in three pairs of twins with autism spectrum disorder in an everyday school environment, the duration of interactions, the most frequent initiators of interactions, and whether there was a difference with regard to whom the social interaction was directed. Six boys with autism, i.e., three pairs of twins, participated in this research. Data was collected by employing questionnaires (A general questionnaire; ZQYT; GARS-3), as well as through observations (The Social Interaction Coding Protocol). The twins’ behavior and interaction were recorded by a video camera. The results showed that twins were most frequently involved in manipulative and repetitive play, somewhat less frequently in relational play, while they did not participate in symbolic play. There was no statistically significant difference in the duration of interactions when the initiator was a twin compared to those initiated by another child, while interactions initiated by a teacher lasted significantly longer. The twins interacted with their co-twin least frequently. Furthermore, research results indicated that simple socially directed behavior was the most common type of interaction, followed by coordinated socially directed behavior. The obtained results led to the conclusion that twins with autism most frequently participate in two types of play and that the duration of their interaction varies depending on whether the initiator is a child or an adult. In children with autism, play has a significant role in the educational context. Thus, the data obtained by observing the play of twins with autism is significant for practitioners when evaluating how play characteristics can be used to plan interventions for improving the social interactions of children with autism.

Introduction: Social knowledge is an important aspect of social cognition that pertains to broader knowledge of social concepts and norms. People with intellectual disabilities are more likely to experience mental health challenges, and it's important to pay special attention to how comorbid conditions can affect their social cognition skills, potentially weakening these skills. Consequently, the present study seeks to compare social knowledge between two groups of adults in Bosnia and Herzegovina: those with intellectual disabilities and those diagnosed with a dual diagnosis encompassing intellectual disability and psychiatric conditions. An additional goal was to identify the factors contributing to social knowledge in these groups. Methods: The study sample included 62 adults with mild intellectual disability, divided into two groups based on their comorbid psychiatric condition. We used a demographic questionnaire, Raven's Progressive Matrices, Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT), MINI PAS – ADD scale, and The Social Knowledge Test to assess social knowledge and intellectual functioning. We compared the social knowledge scores between the two groups and identified the predictors of social knowledge in each group. Results: The results indicated that adult participants with dual diagnoses had lower social knowledge scores than those with intellectual disabilities only, even after controlling for intellectual functioning and verbal abilities. The predictors of social knowledge differed between the two groups, with age being the only statistically significant predictor in both groups. In individuals with intellectual disabilities, age and the presence of obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms were important predictors of social knowledge, while in the group of participants with dual diagnoses, age and PPVT were significant predictors of social knowledge. Conclusion: This study highlights the importance of social knowledge in individuals with intellectual disabilities and dual diagnoses. The findings suggest that individuals with dual diagnoses may have a specific deficit in social knowledge that is not fully explained by their intellectual functioning or verbal abilities. Clinicians and educators should focus on identifying and addressing social knowledge deficits in individuals with dual diagnoses to improve their overall social functioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is often accompanied by various co-morbid conditions, among other things, thyroid diseases. One of the frequently used diagnostic methods to determine the appearance and function of the thyroid gland is scintigraphy. Although thyroid scintigraphy is routinely performed at Clinics for Nuclear Medicine, preparation for nuclear imaging can be very complex from the perspective of people with autism and the experts who support them. Many people with autism have trypanophobia (fear of needles), which is why they have to be specially prepared for venipuncture, during which radiopharmaceutical is injected into the organism. In addition, nuclear imaging with a gamma camera, though completely painless, can be very demanding for a patient with autism who must remain still, without speaking and vocalising during the entire imaging. Clinical staff may also face difficulties in implementing all other stages of this diagnostic procedure. Therefore, this paper proposes a set of evidence-based interventions that can be used to prepare people with autism for thyroid scintigraphy. Techniques of gradual exposure, extinction, reinforcement, modelling, and writing social stories, belonging to the category of focused interventions for people with autism, are proposed.

The goal of bibliotherapy is to use a book to help the reader understand and overcome the difficulties he or she is facing. It can be applied in different contexts. If it is applied in a school environment, we are talking about developmental bibliotherapy. The aim of this paper is to describe the basic stages of developmental bibliotherapy, to present the results of research that indicate the effectiveness of its application, as well as the results of research that refer to the inclination of teachers and associates to opt for this technique. Given that this technique is considered to be a simple, cost-effective, and efficient intervention, and that some teachers and associates do not venture to apply it because they lack the necessary knowledge and skills, the inclusion of bibliotherapy in college training programs could contribute to the increased readiness of professionals to use it in order to help children face challenges in a developmentally appropriate manner.

Introduction. The inclusion of students with disabilities in higher education is a fundamental right recognised by the legal system since its recognition in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. However, the measures adopted by European countries to promote their incorporation are not always accompanied by parallel training actions that provide university professors with the necessary knowledge to incorporate people with intellectual disabilities into the classroom with the same guarantees and opportunities as people without intellectual disabilities. Objective. This paper aims to provide specific data on the self-perceived training needs of university teaching staff and thus lay the foundations for a specific training programme. Methods. A cross-sectional study was carried out by means of a survey designed to collect the teachers' perceptions of their own competences and the effectiveness of their knowledge, as well as the importance they attached to some aspects of intellectual disability. The survey was administered to teachers in Serbia, the Netherlands, Portugal, Italy and Spain, with a total sample of 1009 teachers. Results. The results obtained showed that the perception of self-perceived competence in educational skills is dependent on three main factors: previous specific training, teaching experience with people with intellectual disabilities and own personal experiences. Conclusion. The present study demonstrated the concern and need of the teaching staff to obtain specific training on people with intellectual disabilities in higher education.

This study was conducted with the aim to determine the frequency and predictors of problematic mobile phone use in adolescents with mild intellectual disability (MID) and typically developing adolescents (TDA). The sample included 623 TDA and 67 adolescents with MID. The Mobile Phone Problem Use Scale, Loneliness and Social Dissatisfaction Scale, and Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale were used as primary outcome measures. The percentage of MID and TDA participants with problematic mobile phone use was 11.9% and 9.8% respectively, but there were twice as many participants who belong to the risk group among the participants with MID (20.9%) than among TDA ones (10.2%). Problematic use of mobile phones was related to the number of years of mobile phone usage, more frequent use, female gender, younger age, as well as with a lower level of self-esteem, and a higher level of loneliness. This study showed that almost every third adolescent with MID is having problematic or risky mobile phone use.

Following the declaration of an international state of emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, in many countries, direct treatment of people with autism was suspended. With the introduction of the state of emergency in Serbia, effective from mid-March 2020, all forms of direct support to people with autism and their families were prevented. Instead, new forms of support in the virtual environment were increased and introduced. The purpose of this paper is to present forms of online support for people with autism during the state of emergency, in which the authors participated. Beneficiary users were either direct (people with autism spectrum disorder) or indirect (their parents and therapists). Depending on the time of effectuation, support was synchronous (in real-time) or asynchronous (appropriate materials available on the internet without direct contact between the support provider and client). Synchronous form of direct beneficiary users was the Youth Club, which included six people with high-functioning autism whose social skills treatment was accomplished in small groups, once a week, via video chat. Indirect beneficiary users in real-time support were parents who used online counseling services and early intervention providers who attended one-time online mentoring support. Asynchronous models included specially designed guidance for caregivers of people with autism in a state of emergency and a social story. Past experience indicates the need to create special protocols for dealing with people with autism in the state of emergency.

Background/Aim. The ability to comprehend and produce irony and deception is rarely explored in people with intellectual disability (ID) or dual diagnoses (DD). The ability to understand irony and deception appears to be related to many cognitive skills, but some authors point out that the theory of mind is one of the most important factors for this ability. This research was conducted to determine the linguistic aspects of production and comprehension of irony and deception in adults with ID and DD, as well as the relationship of these abilities with theory of mind. Methods. The sample consisted of 120 people with ID aged between 20 and 56. Half of the sample comprised people with DD. Four subscales from the Assessment Battery for Communication were used to assess the participants’ abilities to produce and comprehend irony and deception. False-belief tasks from “appearance-reality” category were used in theory of mind assessment. The level of intellectual functioning was measured by the Raven’s progressive matrices, while the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test was used to assess speech comprehension ability. Results. The results show that participants with DD and ID comprehend and produce false statements better than ironic ones. Participants with ID were more successful in production than in comprehension tasks of both false and ironic statements, while the same was true for participants with DD only for ironic statements. Participants with ID were significantly more successful than participants with DD in irony comprehension tasks. In participants with ID, first-order theory of mind significantly correlated only with the ability to produce irony, and second-order theory of mind significantly correlated with producing irony and deception. There were no significant correlations between theory of mind and producing and comprehending irony and deception in participants with DD. Conclusion. Although differences in some aspects of assessed abilities were found between the two groups of participants, the similarities in the profile of these abilities were dominant. Results of variability can be explained by differences in speech comprehension ability more than by differences in nonverbal intellectual functioning or theory of mind acquisition. Future studies should assess the influence of other cognitive factors. [Project of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Grant no. 179017: Social Participation of People with Intellectual Disability]

Sensory dysfunction is characterized by difficulty in receiving, processing, and integrating sensory stimuli, resulting in an unusual response to sensory stimulations. An altered sensory reactivity is observed in a large number of people with autism spectrum disorder. The aims of this study were to determine: a) the relationship between the severity of autistic disorder and sensory dysfunctions; b) the relationship between different sensory modalities; c) the relationship between age and functioning on sensory modalities; d) the modalities in which respondents have the most pronounced sensory dysfunctions. The sample included 60 participants with autism spectrum disorder, aged 11 to 26. The adolescent and adult sensory profile (The Adolescent / Adult Sensory Profile, Brown & Dunn, 2002) was used to measure sensory responses of the subjects. For the purposes of determining the severity of autistic disorder, a PDD-MRS scale was used (Pervasive Developmental Disorder Mental Retardation Scale, PDD-MRS, Kraijer & de Bildt, 2005). The results obtained show that in young people with autism spectrum disorder there is no statistically significant relationship between the severity of autistic disorder and the sensory dysfunction. Almost all sensory modalities were mutually correlated significantly. Significant correlations were missing between the participants` age and the altered sensory responses. The results show that subjects achieved significantly higher scores on the Activity Engagement subscale compared with all other subscales, which leads us to conclude that the participants from our sample had the most difficulty in adjusting their activity level to the demands of everyday situations. These findings have significant practical implications, both on the planning and realization of sensory interventions in these individuals, as well as on the need to harmonize the characteristics of the environment in which they reside, the tasks delegated to them, and their sensory specifcities.

Background/Aim. Resilience is related to the substance use in adolescence. However, little is known about the nature of this relation in adolescents with intellectual disability (ID). The aim of this research was to determine the relation among three domains of resilience (sense of mastery, sense of relatedness and emotional reactivity) and the substance use (cigarettes, alcohol, and marijuana) in adolescents with ID. Methods. The sample consisted of 100 adolescents of both genders with mild ID and aged 13-20 years. The Resiliency Scales for Children and Adolescents were used to assess resilience. Results. In the adolescents with ID, resilience was significantly related to the use of cigarettes (χ2 = 13.384; df = 3; p = 0.004), but not to the use of alcohol (χ2 = 6.789; df =3; p > 0.05). Out of the three assessed domains of resilience, increased emotional reactivity was the only significant predictor of cigarette use. Conclusion. The obtained results suggest that emotional difficulties may increase the risk of cigarette use in adolescents with ID. [Project of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Grant no. 179017: Social Participation of Persons with Intellectual Disability]

Examining attitudes towards people with disabilities has been a field of interest of numerous authors in recent years. Accordingly, different scales for measuring attitudes have been used, both at social and personal level. Interaction with Disabled Persons Scale is the most widely used scale for measuring attitudes at personal level . It is designed to measure attitudes regarding the discomfort that people can feel when engaging in social interaction with people with disabilities. The aim of this paper was to determine the factor structure of the Interaction with Disabled Persons Scale. The research included 462 students of the Faculty of Medicine in Foča, who were attending three study programs: Medicine, Special Education and Rehabilitation and Health Care. In order to determine the factor structure of the scale, the main components were extracted with orthogonal varimax rotation. The results showed that two factors were found which explain 37,69% of variance and were named Empathy and Discomfort and Fear. Three items with low factor saturation were omitted from this version of the scale. Disagreement with other authors with regard to the number of factors obtained imposes the need to check the structure of the IDP scale on different and numerous samples for the purpose of evaluating the invariance of the scale in different contexts.

Studies have indicated that the level of autonomy of people with intellectual disability is influenced by personal and environmental factors. The aims of this cross-sectional and correlational study were to determine a correlation between the level of autonomy in adults with intellectual disability, on the one hand, and specific personal and environmental factors, on the other hand, and to determine the predictors of the achieved level of autonomy. Adults with mild and moderate intellectual disabilities (N = 128) completed self-report Autonomy subscale of The Arc's Self-Determination Scale: Adult Version and the Choice Questionnaire. Their executive functions were assessed individually. Data on participants' social skills were obtained from their caretakers using the Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scale – Socialisation domain. The results indicated a significant positive correlation between participants' level of autonomous behaviour and their age, social skills, availability of choice and executive functions. Significant independent predictors of the autonomy level were availability of choice, type of housing, gender and age of the participants. It is concluded that it is important to apply the procedures designed to develop the skills of independent decision-making as well as support the encouragement of independent housing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) commonly show signs of resistance to regular school transition activities. This issue can be overcome through the use of a visual schedule. The research presented in the paper aimed to test the possibilities of introducing visual schedules for students with ASD. The research sample consisted of students with ASD (H = 7) and their special education teachers (H = 7). Student training was carried out in four phases. Data were collected using a general questionnaire, a questionnaire for assessing the severity of autism spectrum symptoms, a procedure monitoring form, and a questionnaire on the use of the visual schedule. The results obtained indicate that during their four-day training, four students successfully mastered all four phases, while three students managed to complete phase three. Physical stimuli decreased over the course of the training, so that in the last phase none of the students relied on either complete or partial physical stimuli. Success in mastering the independent use of the visual schedules is not significantly related to the degree of repetitive behavior exhibited, to time spent on training, or to the number of negative or positive reactions. We can conclude that introducing this procedure into everyday work with children with ASD would improve pedagogical practice, both in regular schools and in schools for children with developmental disabilities.

Intellectual disability (ID) is a chronic adversity that increases the likelihood of negative developmental outcomes. The aim of this research is to examine differences between adolescents with mild ID and typically developing (TD) adolescents in personal qualities which contribute to successful adaptation. The sample consisted of 92 adolescents with mild ID and 772 TD adolescents, 13-19 years of age, of both sexes. Resiliency was assessed using the Resiliency Scales for Children and Adolescents. In comparison to TD adolescents, adolescents with mild ID have significantly lower levels of sense of mastery and sense of relatedness and a higher level of emotional reactivity. In the subsample of adolescents with mild ID there were no age or sex differences for resiliency. Adolescents with mild ID have a lower level of resiliency than TD adolescents, which highlights the need to develop programs focused on personal qualities associated with positive developmental outcomes.