Dynamics of a novel fractional-order model for autism spectrum disorder perspective propagation with optimal control.

Researchers created a mathematical model to study how negative attitudes about autism spread in society. They found that combining therapy programs with media awareness campaigns works best to change these attitudes - achieving a 75% improvement. Therapy alone was three times better than just media campaigns. The study shows that changing people's minds about autism takes time because past experiences strongly influence current views.

This mathematical modeling study developed a fractional-order model to understand how negative societal attitudes toward autism spread and persist over time. The model incorporates memory effects, showing that historical experiences continuously influence current perceptions. The study compared different intervention strategies, finding that therapeutic programs were three times more effective than media campaigns alone for changing negative attitudes. Combined interventions (media + therapy) achieved a 75% reduction in negative perspectives and were deemed cost-effective.

The fractional-order approach revealed that attitude changes occur 30-50% slower than predicted by traditional models, highlighting the persistent nature of social attitudes.

Results suggest that sustained, combined interventions targeting both media representation and direct therapeutic engagement may be most effective for reducing autism stigma. The slower attitude change rates identified indicate that long-term commitment and realistic timelines are essential for successful stigma reduction programs.

This is a theoretical mathematical modeling study without real-world validation. No actual participants or empirical data collection was involved. The model's assumptions and parameters may not accurately reflect complex real-world social dynamics and individual differences in attitude formation.

This study addresses the propagation of negative societal perspectives toward Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) through a novel fractional-order mathematical model that captures the critical memory effect in individuals' attitude formation, where historical experiences continuously shape current perceptions. By analyzing intervention strategies combining media awareness campaigns and therapeutic programs, we demonstrate that fractional calculus reveals significantly slower attitude transitions (30-50 percent reduction in rate) compared to classical models, with therapeutic interventions proving three times more effective than media campaigns alone in rehabilitating negative perspectives of individuals. Our optimal control problem identifies a strategy that achieves a 75 percent reduction in negative perspectives, while cost-effectiveness analysis confirms the economic viability of the proposed combined approaches. These findings suggest that integrated interventions utilizing both media and therapy control measures yield the most efficient path to mitigating negative perspectives towards Autism Spectrum Disorder, with fractional-order modeling providing essential insights into the persistent nature of social attitudes that traditional integer-order models cannot capture.