Is Joint Attention Deficit in Autistic Children Curable?

From the viewpoint of Dohsa-method based “body-experience sharing theory (BEST) ”

抄録

Recently, the mechanism of communication deficits in autistic children hasbeen argued from various theoretical background, such as “cognitive theory (Theoryofmind) ”,“affective theory,” and “affordance theory.” Most studies consider the jointattention to be a precursor of communication skill. We can realize well functioningspeech or reciprocal communication in a social context, when both the speaker and thelistener have common affective states or mind shared with one another. Then, how canhuman being develop the ability to have affective states or joint attention? The authorproposes “body-experience sharing theory (BEST).” This theory insists on the importanceof sharing body-experience or reciprocal communication through body sensation suchas warmth and softness, as the premise for developing affect sharing and joint attention.Based on the shared good body-experience with caregivers, children come to be able to getinto a world in which common meaning is shared. In this article, the author suggests thatthe disturbance of shared body-experience causes joint attention deficits in autistic children, and discusses the BEST based intervention strategy of developing joint attention.