Early behavioral development in autistic children: the first 2 years of life through home movies

Objective: The main aim of the research is to study the early behavioral development in autistic children through home movies.

Methods: fifteen home movies, regarding the first 2 years of life of autistic children are compared with the home movies of 15 normal children. The films of the two groups were mixed and rated by blind ratings with the Grid for the Assessment of Normal Behavior in Infants and Toddlers. The grid is composed of 17 items grouped into three developmental areas: social competence, intersubjectivity and symbolic activity. For every area, we have identified specific children's behaviors.

Results: Significant differences between the two groups are found both in the range of age 0-6 for intersubjectivity, and in the ranges of age 6-12 and 18-24 for symbolic activity.

Conclusions: The authors pose some hypotheses about an early-appearing impairment of intersubjectivity, the ability to represent other's state of mind, in subjects with autistic disorder.