THE POTENTIAL OF USING IMITATION AS LEARNING IN ENHANCING THE SOCIAL BEHAVIOR OF CHILDREN WITH ASD

Abstract

A plethora of studies have been conducted with regards to imitation as primary method of learning trough which children acquire new skills. A serious amount of evidence has been brought up in recent years suggesting that ‘being imitated’ presents social valences and that the imitation of children could be used as a tool of stimulating social engagement in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The importance of teaching imitation to children with disabilities has been recognized as early as the 1960s. This article is a literature review exploring the contemporary approaches towards the behavioral consequences of imitation as learning in ASD. The ‘being imitated’ method promotes progress in terms of social gazes, play skills and proximal social behaviors. This applies more especially to children with lower developmental level but also when the child’s mother adopts the strategy.

Keywords

• autism; imitation as learning; social brain; asd; being imitated