Favourite objects of autistic children

Area of Science:

• Developmental Psychology
• Child Psychiatry
• Behavioral Science

Background:

• Favourite objects (FOs) play a significant role in child development, particularly transitional objects.
• Previous research has characterized typical FOs in healthy children, but less is known about those preferred by autistic children or children with intellectual disabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the characteristics and clusters of favourite objects (FOs) in autistic children with those of healthy children and children with intellectual disabilities.
• To identify unique patterns or clusters of FOs associated with autism and intellectual disability.

Main Methods:

• Comparative analysis of favourite objects (FOs) across three groups: autistic children, healthy children (preschool and school-aged), and mentally handicapped children.
• Categorization of FOs into distinct clusters based on object characteristics and usage patterns.

Main Results:

• Healthy children's FOs formed three clusters: primary transitional objects, secondary transitional objects, and non-cuddly toys.
• Autistic children and children with intellectual disabilities exhibited a similar distribution within these clusters and also showed a preference for a fourth cluster of 'deviant' objects.
• Secondary transitional objects were rarely found in the handicapped groups, and characteristics of 'autistic' FOs (e.g., hard, stimulating, non-functional use) were specific to the deviant object cluster.

Conclusions:

• Autism and intellectual disability are associated with a distinct pattern of favourite object selection, characterized by a preference for 'deviant' objects.
• The findings suggest that the nature of favourite objects can be an indicator of developmental differences.
• Further research into object preferences may offer insights into the sensory and behavioral characteristics of autistic children and those with intellectual disabilities.