Neuropsychology
Zahra Rafiee; Sedigheh Rezaei Dehnavi
Abstract
The research aimed to examine the effectiveness of computerized cognitive rehabilitation in improving cognitive and social skills while reducing autism symptoms in young individuals with autism spectrum disorder. The research followed a quasi-experimental method with a pre-test and post-test design including ...
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The research aimed to examine the effectiveness of computerized cognitive rehabilitation in improving cognitive and social skills while reducing autism symptoms in young individuals with autism spectrum disorder. The research followed a quasi-experimental method with a pre-test and post-test design including a control group. The study included all young boys who were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and referred to the comprehensive daily educational and rehabilitation center for autism spectrum disorders in Fatemeh Zahra city of Isfahan in the spring of 1401. 22 were randomly selected and divided into experimental and control groups. Data was collected using two evaluation checklists: The Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC) was used to evaluate cognitive and social skills, and the Gars 2 test (GARS) was used to evaluate the severity of autism symptoms. Both checklists were completed by the parents and experts of the center. The experimental group received 16 20-minute sessions of computerized cognitive rehabilitation twice a week based on Captain Log's cognitive rehabilitation package (2000). The data collected was analyzed by the statistical method of analysis of covariance. The results showed that computerized cognitive rehabilitation training significantly improves social skills and the severity of autism symptoms at a significant level of 0.05. However, the study indicated that computerized cognitive rehabilitation is not effective in increasing cognitive skills in youth with autism spectrum disorder. In conclusion, the research demonstrated that computerized cognitive rehabilitation is effective in improving social skills and reducing autism symptoms in young individuals with autism spectrum disorder.
