Abstract
Background
Autism is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by poor communication behavior, narrow interests, and stereotyped behavior. Language communication barriers have a profound impact on the lives of individuals with autism, as they struggle to understand the verbal and nonverbal communication of others, and have weak adaptability. Studies have shown that painting can help individuals with autism release their inner emotions and stress, reduce anxiety and stereotyped behavior. The digital art team can provide patients with a non-verbal way of expression through art therapy, helping them release emotions and improve social interaction and communication skills. However, the actual application effect of digital art teams in the intervention of language communication disorders in autistic patients has not been verified. Therefore, the study will explore the intervention effect of digital art teams on language communication disorders in individuals with autism.
Methods
The study selected 65 autistic patients admitted to a tertiary hospital in a certain city from October 2019 to July 2023 as the research subjects, and divided them into an observation group (n=33) and a control group (n=32) using a random number table method. Patients in the control group received routine care, while patients in the observation group received art therapy from the digital art team on the basis of routine care. The experiment lasts for 2 months. The study used the Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC) to evaluate the degree of autism in autistic patients before and after treatment from four dimensions: language communication, physiology, cognitive ability, and social ability. The higher the score, the more severe the symptoms.
Results
The ATEC scores of the two groups of patients before and after treatment are shown in Table 1. From Table 1, there was no statistically significant difference in ATEC scores between the two groups of patients before treatment (P>0.05). After two months of treatment, the ATEC scores of both groups of patients significantly decreased (P<0.05). And the scores of the observation group patients in the four dimensions of language communication, physiology, cognitive ability, and social ability were significantly lower than those of the control group (P<0.05).
Discussion
Language communication skills disorder is a common and significant obstacle among individuals with autism. The experimental results show that the art therapy of digital art teams can effectively improve the language communication ability, cognitive ability, and social ability of autistic patients, and improve their autism symptoms. The research findings contribute to improving the quality of life and social functioning of individuals with autism, and provide an effective means of intervening in language communication disorders among individuals with autism.
