Comparing the Effectiveness of Joint Attention Training and Logotherapy on Primary Social Relations, Anxiety and Executive Functions of Children with Autism Spectrum

Introduction: Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) is a neurological disorder and can cause significant social, communication and behavioral challenges in the affected person. Aim: The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of joint attention training and logotherapy on primary social communication, anxiety and executive functions of children with autism. Method: The research design was quasi-experimental with pre-test-post-test and control group. The statistical population was children with autism spectrum who referred to psychiatry and psychology centers in Urmia city in 2022. A statistical sample of 45 people was selected by a targeted method and then was randomly placed in three groups of 15 people (two experimental groups and one control group). The required data was collected using questionnaires of basic social communication (Zeboff, 2010), anxiety (Spence, 1999), executive functions (Ballister-Gerard et al., 2000) through two logotherapy intervention methods Owens and LeGoff (2007) 12 sessions of 45 minutes and through shared attention training (Vakilizad and Abedi, 2015) 12 sessions of 90 minutes and then was analyzed with SPSS version 28 software and Multivariate Analysis of Covariance Test. Results: The results showed that joint attention training and logotherapy strengthened basic social communication and executive functions and weakened anxiety in children with autism. However, there is no significant difference between the effectiveness of joint attention training and logotherapy on primary social communication, anxiety and executive functions of children with autism spectrum (P>0.01). Conclusion: Joint attention training and logotherapy lead to strengthening basic social communication and executive functions and weakening anxiety in children with autism spectrum. Therefore, these two programs can be suggested as a suitable intervention to control autistic disorders and improve the quality of life of autistic children.