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Abstract

Autism is a range of Neuro-developmental disorders that disrupts the growth and development of a person's communication and social skills. This research determines the effect of cognitive rehabilitation of visual perception on executive functions and theory of mind in children with autism spectrum disorders. This study is an quasi-experimental  research. Its statistical population included all students aged 6 to 12 with autism spectrum disorders in Ahvaz in the Education Department of Exceptional Children and the Khuzestan Autism Association. The sample consisted of 40 children with autism spectrum disorder. They were selected at convenience and were randomly divided into two experimental (20 people) and control (20 people) groups. The experimental group received visual perception cognitive rehabilitation intervention during 10 30-minute sessions, and the control group did not receive any intervention. We used the Behavioral Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) and Stirenman's 38-question theory of mind test to collect information.

The results showed that cognitive rehabilitation of visual perception can significantly improve executive functions and theory of mind in autistic children. The effectiveness of visual perception cognitive rehabilitation intervention was confirmable for the executive functions of working memory and cognitive flexibility, and its effect was rejected for the inhibitory control component. As the results showed, this intervention as a practical intervention improves cognitive abilities, communication skills, and behavioral symptoms in children with autism spectrum disorders, and is usable for designing treatment protocols and increasing abilities relevant to executive function and development of the theory of mind in individuals with autism disorders.