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The Current Situation and Development Trend of Interventions for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Finland

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Educating Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder in China and Finland

Part of the book series: New Frontiers of Educational Research ((NFER))

Abstract

This chapter presents a brief overview of the current situation and development trend of interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in Finland. Interventions, particularly early interventions, are seen crucial for children with ASD in order to support their developing skills. Research has identified multiple interventions that are currently regarded as evidence based. First, this chapter takes a look at the current international and national recommendations and suggestions for nonpharmacological ASD interventions, and, by drawing on recent empirical studies, explores the interventions provided in Finland. It appears that speech and language therapy and occupational therapy are relatively well available in Finland, particularly in comparison to other parts of Europe. Specific concerns in Finland relate to the lack of official national recommendations for ASD interventions and regional availability of professionals with expertise in ASD. Challenges in ensuring earlier identification of ASD and thus earlier access to intervention are also recognized. Finally, the chapter provides a case example of the rehabilitation path of a Finnish boy with ASD, discusses the development trend of intervention provision in Finland, and suggests some future directions.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    The study examined the hospital records and data on treatment and rehabilitation of 187 children with ASD (aged 3–18 years) during the years 1996–1997 in northern Finland.

  2. 2.

    The study by Kärnä et al. (unpublished) was conducted for this book in 2016 and focused on the interventions that children, adolescents, and young adults with ASD were currently receiving. This survey aimed to map the situation in Finland and had 89 parents of people with ASD as respondents. The mean age of individuals with ASD was 10.7 years, ranging between 4 and 24 years. Seventy-five percent of them were male. The study by Salomone et al. (2015) was conducted as part of a larger project to investigate the type and intensity of the current use of early interventions for young children with ASD in 18 countries in Southern, Eastern, Western, and Northern (including Finland) Europe. Overall, the survey had 1680 respondents. In Finland, 41 parents of children with ASD responded to the survey. The children’s mean age was 5.4 years, 87.8% of them being male (in the Finnish sample). Overall, the children’s age ranged between 21 and 83 months.

  3. 3.

    In the survey, parent training was defined as any sort of training, counselling, or coaching that was directed at helping parents with their children. In addition to guiding provided as part of therapy, this can refer to counselling and adaptation training provided by the national insurance institution or specific foundations. It can also include visits by rehabilitation training coaches.

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Acknowledgments and Funding

We thank the mother of Eetu for participating and sharing experiences during the interview. We also thank Dr. Leena Mäkinen for her comments and suggestions on an earlier version of this chapter. In preparing this chapter, the authors were financially supported by the Alfred Kordelin Foundation, the Olvi Foundation, the Academy of Finland (project number 276578), and the Eudaimonia Institute of the University of Oulu.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Eastern Finland, Finland, Joensuu

    Katja Dindar

  2. Research Unit of Logopedics, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland

    Soile Loukusa

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  1. Katja Dindar
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  2. Soile Loukusa
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Correspondence to Katja Dindar .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China

    Xiaoyi Hu

  2. School of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Eastern Finland, Joensuu, Finland

    Eija Kärnä

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Dindar, K., Loukusa, S. (2019). The Current Situation and Development Trend of Interventions for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Finland. In: Hu, X., Kärnä, E. (eds) Educating Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder in China and Finland. New Frontiers of Educational Research. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-8203-1_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-8203-1_4

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