Emotion Coregulation in Mother-Child Dyads: A Dynamic Systems Analysis of Children with and without Autism Spectrum Disorder

Few studies have investigated patterns of emotion coregulation in families of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or contrasted the ways in which their emotion coregulation patterns differ from families of typically developing (TD) children. To address this gap, we used a dynamic systems approach to compare flexible structure and emotional content of coregulation between mothers and children (3-7 years) with ASD (n = 47) and TD children (n = 26). Mother-child play interactions in the home were videotaped and emotion-engagement states were coded in micro-level 5-s intervals based on behavioral and affective expressions. Analyses indicated that mother-child dyads in the ASD group spent more time than dyads in the TD group in mismatched emotion-engagement states (e.g., child negative/mother positive), and children with ASD spent more time than TD children engaged exclusively with objects. Mother-child dyads in the TD group stayed longer in mutual positive engagement states. Compared to dyads in the TD group, mother-child dyads in the ASD group exhibited greater flexibility (i.e., a wider range of emotional-engagement states, more frequent changes in states, and less time in each state). These findings suggest that mothers and their children with ASD do not sustain dyadic positive engagement patterns in a low-stress environment. Findings confirmed the preference of children with ASD for objects over social partners, even when they are at home with their mothers, and elucidated a challenging mother-child interactional style. Results have implications for mother-child interventions aimed at regulating negative emotional states and sustaining positive ones in families raising children with ASD

Storytelling and Advocacy for Physicians

An interactive workshop dedicated to increasing healthcare providers awareness of how storytelling can serve as a strategy to cope with provider stress. The workshop will engage healthcare providers in a storytelling exercise about gun violence, motivating participants to advocate for relevant policy. This workshop will be led by Dr. Valerie Arkoosh, Chair, Montgomery County Board of Commissioners, and members of the Jefferson Eakins Workshop team, Drs. Stanton Miller, Stephen DiDonato, Rachel Brandoff, and Astra Czerny. ----- Dr. Valerie Arkoosh was unanimously elected as Chair of the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners on November 17, 2016 succeeding former Commission Chair Josh Shapiro. First appointed to fill a vacancy on the Commission in January 2015, Arkoosh won election to a full four-year term in November 2015 and served as Commission Vice Chair until her election as Chair. Montgomery County, located in southeastern Pennsylvania, is the third most populous county in Pennsylvania with over 823,000 residents. Dr. Arkoosh is bringing innovative reforms to county government. Rachel Brandoff, Ph.D., ATR-BC, ATCS, LCAT, is an assistant professor and coordinator of the Art Therapy Specialization in Community and Trauma Counseling at Jefferson University in Philadelphia. She has taught at several schools and enjoys training trauma-responsive art therapists and counselors. She is one of the founders of the Expressive Therapies Summit, a NYC-based professional training conference, and served for a decade as the Ethics Chair for the board of the New York Art Therapy Association (NYATA). Rachel has experience with a wide array of clinical populations in both inpatient and outpatient settings, and has specialized with individuals and families coming out of crisis situations and facing major life transition. Rachel has maintained a private practice for 12 years and provides supervision and consultation to practicing art therapists. Dr. Stephen DiDonato holds his Ph.D. in International Psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. Stephen is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in the State of Pennsylvania and holds his National Certified Counselor (NCC) credential. Stephen has clinical expertise working with children, families, and communities who have been exposed to potentially traumatic events. Specifically, Stephen’s clinical focus has been on enhancing the adaption to the inherently complex traumatic environments that children and families face in underserved communities. Stephen is a co-founder of the Jefferson Eakins Writers’ Workshop - a literary workshop at Jefferson Center for Injury Research & Prevention dedicated to the stories of injury and all its victims

Fostering Feedback: Using Focus Groups to Develop a Standardized Foster Parent Training Curriculum

Those in the Child Welfare system often enter with many complex physical, mental, and behavioral health needs. The foster parent plays a crucial role in caring for these children and may face challenges in addressing such needs. Inability to manage challenges may affect foster child integration and placement stability. Multiple displacements may then further contribute to health challenges and outcomes of the foster children. Therefore, it is vital for the foster parent to be well-trained and prepared to handle their responsibilities. Training curricula, however, are still unstandardized and variable in quality. In this Integrative Learning Experience, a secondary data analysis of focus groups was performed, with the goal of eliciting feedback from important child welfare stakeholders. Data from focus groups will be utilized by The Council of Spanish Speaking Organizations, Inc. (Concilio), in Philadelphia to ultimately inform the development of a standardized foster parent training curriculum