In this 2022 article; “Muting, filtering and transforming space: Autistic children’s sensory ‘tactics’ for navigating mainstream school space following the transition to secondary school.”, the take-home messages are:
There are sensory challenges in mainstream school environments for ASD children.
Working with young people post-transition to secondary school has highlighted these challenges.
Sensory challenges exist across the school environment: Classrooms, lunch halls, playgrounds and even corridors can feel overwhelming.
Muting, filtering and transforming space ‘tactics’ are ways that young people deal with feelings of sensory overload.
Teachers, parents and therapists can use this understanding of these sensory tactics to support the design of more inclusive school spaces.
Dr Yana Wengel is an associate professor at Hainan University. Yana takes a critical approach to tourism studies; her interests include volunteer tourism, tourism in developing economies and nature-based tourism. Her dissertation examined the social construction of host-guest experiences in volunteer farm tourism. Her current projects are focused on nature-based tourism and leisure and travel experiences of patients with an eating disorder. Yana is interested in creative methodologies for data collection and stakeholder engagement. She is a co-founder of the LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® research community.
Despite high phenotypic heterogeneity in ASD, a meaningful subpopulation of children with ASD (∼90%) show significant general motor impairment. More focused studies on the nature of motor impairment in ASD reveal that children with ASD are particularly impaired on tasks such as ball catching and motor imitation that require efficient visual-motor integration (VMI).
Tonight’s Coffee and Chat is all about Ayres’ SI and Learning Disabilities with special guest working in the field of learning disabilities across the lifespan.
Come and Listen to our practising therapists and experts explore assessment tools, the role of consultation and how to deliver services that draw on the theory and practice of Ayres’ Sensory Integration.
Read about the application of Ayres’ SI in Learning Disabilities on this reference and reading list below.
Papers here include from therapists, Ros Urwin, whose Master’s in 2005 was the first UK study to investigate ASI with adults with learning disabilities in the UK, our colleague Rachel Daniels, whose work in this field was the focus of a research project and Ciara McGill, who we had the pleasure to teach on the journey that led to her Master’s Study publication with Ulster University.
Cahill, S.M. and J. Pagano. 2015. Reducing restraint and seclusion: the benefit and role of occupational therapy. American Occupational Therapy Association.
Champagne, T. and N. Stromberg. 2004. Sensory approaches in an-patient psychiatric settings: Innovative alternatives to seclusion and restraint. Journal of Psychosocial Nursing 42(9): 35–44.
Daniels, R. 2015. Community occupational therapy for learning disabilities: The process of providing Ayres sensory integration therapy and approaches to this population. Birmingham: European Sensory Integration Conference. www.iceasi-org
Department of Health. 2012a. Department of Health review: Winterbourne View hospital interim report. London: Department of Health.
Department of Health. 2012b. Transforming care: A national response to Winterbourne View Hospital: Department of Health review final report. London: Department of Health.
Department of Health. 2014. Positive and proactive care: reducing the need for restrictive interventions. London: Department of Health.
Gay, J. 2012. Positive solutions in practice: using sensory focused activities to help reduce restraint and seclusion. Victoria: Office of the Senior Practitioner.
Green, D., Beaton, L., Moore, D., Warren, L., Wick, V., Sanford, J. E., & Santosh, P. (2003). Clinical Incidence of Sensory Integration Difficulties in Adults with Learning Disabilities and Illustration of Management. British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 66(10), 454–463
Lillywhite, A. and D. Haines. 2010. Occupational therapy and people with learning disabilities: Findings from a research study. London: College of Occupational Therapists.
Leong, H. M., Carter, M., & Stephenson, J. (2015). A systematic review of sensory integration therapy for individuals with disabilities: Single case design studies. Research in developmental disabilities, 47, 334–351.
Royal College of Psychiatrists. 2013. People with a learning disability and mental health, behavioural or forensic problems: The role of inpatient services. London: Royal College of Psychiatrists.
Transforming Care and Commissioning Steering Group. 2014. Winterbourne View – Time for change: Transforming the commissioning of services for people with learning disabilities [Bubb Report]. London: NHS England.
Urwin, R., & Ballinger, C. (2005). The Effectiveness of Sensory Integration Therapy to Improve Functional Behaviour in Adults with Learning Disabilities: Five Single-Case Experimental Designs. British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 68(2), 56–66.
Urwin, Rosalind and Ballinger, Claire(2005)The effectiveness of sensory integration therapy to improve functional behaviour in adults with learning disabilities: five single-case experimental designs.British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 68(2), 56-66.
Abstract
This paper describes a research project using a single-case experimental design (A-B-A), which aimed to explore the impact of sensory integration therapy (SIT) on level of engagement and maladaptive behaviour (measured through timed scores) and function (using Goal Attainment Scaling, GAS) for five learning disabled adults with tactile sensory modulation disorder.
Each phase lasted 4 weeks and consisted of 24 measurements in total. Individually tailored SIT was given twice weekly for 4 weeks during the intervention phase (B), immediately prior to each individual’s participation in his or her prescribed horticulture task. The changes between phases in engagement, maladaptive behaviours and function scores, measured as the difference between baselines and intervention, were analysed visually and statistically for each participant.
The intervention produced significant improvements in engagement for participant four, with a highly significant deterioration in scores for all five participants on withdrawal of SIT. All the participants’ maladaptive behaviour decreased significantly on the introduction of SIT. Although there was no significant change to GAS scores for four participants, participant four’s score improved significantly with SIT. The withdrawal of SIT resulted in a highly significant deterioration in GAS scores for participants one, two, four and five. This study may be the first to suggest that SIT is effective in improving functional performance in adults with a learning disability with a tactile sensory modulation disorder.
The Impact of The Sensory Form on Confidence and Competence in Occupational Therapy Students: A Quasi-Experimental Study. Journal of Occupational Therapy Education, 5 (1).
From ‘down-under’ a ‘top down and bottom up approach’. This new study. Michail, E., Mills, C. J., & Coxon, K. (2021) grounded in the theory of ASI may provide more than just another tool for our Occupational Therapy Tool Box. It will be interesting to see if its use will also support and evidence about the links between our senses and occupational performance using sensory strategies
This tool, which is absolutely grounded in the theory of Ayres SI and clearly links to occupation may be the start of something interesting and exciting, as the tool is explicitly guiding clinical reasoning to ensure the use of sensory strategies is linked to identifying strengths and challenges, Its use to support the collecting data to generate a hypothesis to inform intervention planning is in line with the data-driven decision-making tool (Schaaf and Mailloux 2015) and evidence-based practice. It will be great to see the outcomes measured when this tool is used to guide the recommendation and implementation of sensory strategies in a data-driven way, with personalised goals (e.g. MOHO, GAS, COPM, OSA and ABAS etc) being based on a thorough assessment data.
“We know that (sensory) skills and strategies are helpful at “anytime in life” Here is their latest article on The Sensory Form, a free planning tool for sensory processing. OT students who used the Sensory Form were more competent in identifying sensory difficulties and linking these difficulties to occupation than students who didn’t. The findings were pretty interesting! It’s open access so you can freely download and share with anyone”
Posted by one of the authors, Christine Mills in SI4OT [last accessed 03/02/2021]
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