Trauma, Autism, and Neurodevelopmental Disorders

The Second Edition examines the diagnostic overlap and continuing confusion between the DSM-5 diagnostic categories of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), which include autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and trauma and stressor related disorders (TSRDs). Specifically, the book addresses challenges to diagnostic considerations resulting from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the exponential increase of information available to the public about trauma, neurodiversity, and autism-affirming services. It describes the ways in which these conditions are similar in that children with developmental disorders are particularly vulnerable to traumatic events and all have pervasive effects on the brain and development. Chapters provide a wealth of effective clinical, family, and school-based interventions developed from established studies and important new findings. In addition, chapters use illustrative case studies to survey assessment challenges in the healthcare climate and consider alternative routes for improving correct diagnoses, identify appropriate interventions, and refer proper targeted, evidence-based treatment and services. The book offers recommendations for needs-based service access, including a more widespread use and acceptance of the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) and the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) framework.

Key areas of coverage include:

• Trauma and neurodevelopmental disorders from a public health perspective.
• The neurobiological contributors to trauma and stressor related disorders (TSRDs) and fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs) and their diagnosis in children with a history of trauma.
• Interventions for trauma and stressor-related disorders in preschool-aged children.
• Reactive attachment disorder (RAD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis and care in a cultural context.
• Considerations in ASD identification and treatment across the lifespan and for diverse populations (race, gender, international).

Trauma, Autism, and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Second Edition, is a must-have resource for researchers, professors, and graduate students as well as clinicians, therapists, and related professionals in developmental psychology, child and adolescent psychiatry, public health, social work, pediatrics, and special education.