AutismPub Date : 2025-02-25DOI: 10.1177/13623613251322923
Natalie Libster, Ryan Adams, Somer Bishop, Shuting Zheng, Julie Lounds Taylor
{"title":"Satisfaction with friendship support protects autistic youth from the negative effects of peer victimization.","authors":"Natalie Libster, Ryan Adams, Somer Bishop, Shuting Zheng, Julie Lounds Taylor","doi":"10.1177/13623613251322923","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251322923","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Lay abstract: </strong>Autistic youth are more likely to be bullied than youth who are not on the autism spectrum. Youth in the general population who are bullied experience poor mental health, but those who are satisfied with their friendships may be protected from these negative outcomes. No studies have looked at how friendships affect the mental health of autistic youth who are bullied by their peers. Autistic youth completed questionnaires that asked them to report how frequently they were bullied, whether they were satisfied with the support they received from friends, and depressive symptoms they experienced. Depressive symptoms did not differ between youth who were more satisfied and youth who were less satisfied with their friendship support. However, among youth who were frequently bullied, depressive symptoms were lower for those who were more satisfied with their friendship support compared to those who were less satisfied with their friendship support. This study shows that interventions are needed to support the mental health of autistic youth by decreasing bullying by peers and increasing positive peer relationships.</p>","PeriodicalId":8724,"journal":{"name":"Autism","volume":" ","pages":"13623613251322923"},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2025-02-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143490146","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
AutismPub Date : 2025-02-25DOI: 10.1177/13623613251314223
Sarah C Bayoumi, Ashley Halkett, Meghan Miller, Stephen P Hinshaw
{"title":"Food selectivity and eating difficulties in adults with autism and/or ADHD.","authors":"Sarah C Bayoumi, Ashley Halkett, Meghan Miller, Stephen P Hinshaw","doi":"10.1177/13623613251314223","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251314223","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Lay abstract: </strong>Some people do not like many foods, eat very quickly or slowly, or eat too much or too little. These problems are more common in children with autism or ADHD and may continue for a long time, but we do not know much about these problems in adults. Our goal was to understand how eating difficulties are similar and different in adults with autism, ADHD, both autism/ADHD, and neither condition. We also wanted to understand factors that relate to picky eating and overall eating difficulties. We found that autistic adults had the most problems with eating compared to all other groups. Adults with ADHD had more eating problems than adults with neither condition. Adults with autism and/or ADHD were more sensitive to taste and texture of foods, had difficulty with spilling food, and found it hard to tell whether they are hungry or full compared to people without these conditions. We also found that autism and ADHD traits were linked to picky eating and having more eating problems. The results show that many autistic adults and some with ADHD might need support with eating. Doctors should pay attention to eating problems to help people get the care they need. Results also show that wanting things to stay the same may be more related to eating problems than researchers previously thought. We need more research to understand how to support adults with eating difficulties.</p>","PeriodicalId":8724,"journal":{"name":"Autism","volume":" ","pages":"13623613251314223"},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2025-02-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143490491","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
AutismPub Date : 2025-02-24DOI: 10.1177/13623613251319585
Themis N Efthimiou, Charlotte Eh Wilks, Sarah Foster, Michelle Dodd, Noah J Sasson, Danielle Ropar, Martin Lages, Sue Fletcher-Watson, Catherine J Crompton
{"title":"Social motor synchrony and interactive rapport in autistic, non-autistic, and mixed-neurotype dyads.","authors":"Themis N Efthimiou, Charlotte Eh Wilks, Sarah Foster, Michelle Dodd, Noah J Sasson, Danielle Ropar, Martin Lages, Sue Fletcher-Watson, Catherine J Crompton","doi":"10.1177/13623613251319585","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251319585","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Lay abstract: </strong>During social interactions, people often mirror each other's movements and gestures, a process called synchrony. This synchrony helps foster a sense of connection, understanding, and ease in communication. While research suggests that autistic people may show less synchrony in their movements compared to non-autistic people, the implications of this difference for building rapport remain unclear. Specifically, it is unknown whether synchrony plays a similar role in rapport-building for autistic individuals as it does for non-autistic individuals, particularly in interactions with autistic versus non-autistic partners. This study had three goals to investigate whether synchrony is lower in conversations involving at least one autistic person; to explore the relationship between synchrony and rapport; and to compare how much autistic and non-autistic people rely on synchrony to feel connected. The findings suggest that while synchrony positively influences rapport more strongly in non-autistic interactions, autistic individuals may rely less on synchrony for rapport. These results highlight differences in how social connection is built, offering deeper insight into social interactions for autistic and non-autistic people.</p>","PeriodicalId":8724,"journal":{"name":"Autism","volume":" ","pages":"13623613251319585"},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2025-02-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143490160","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
AutismPub Date : 2025-02-24DOI: 10.1177/13623613251320444
Sarah J Foster, Robert A Ackerman, Charlotte Eh Wilks, Michelle Dodd, Rachel Calderon, Danielle Ropar, Sue Fletcher-Watson, Catherine J Crompton, Noah J Sasson
{"title":"Rapport in same and mixed neurotype groups of autistic and non-autistic adults.","authors":"Sarah J Foster, Robert A Ackerman, Charlotte Eh Wilks, Michelle Dodd, Rachel Calderon, Danielle Ropar, Sue Fletcher-Watson, Catherine J Crompton, Noah J Sasson","doi":"10.1177/13623613251320444","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251320444","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Lay abstract: </strong>Autistic adults sometimes get along better with other autistic people compared to non-autistic people, but so far this has only been studied in two-person interactions. This study examined how well autistic and non-autistic people develop rapport in a group setting and whether rapport differs when group members share or do not share a diagnosis. We assigned 143 adults to 36 groups of four adults each. Some groups only had autistic members, some only had non-autistic members, and some were \"mixed\" groups of autistic and non-autistic members. Groups participated in a tower-building task for 5 minutes and afterwards completed a survey about rapport with the group. The groups of all-autistic participants expressed that their interactions were more enjoyable and friendly than the mixed groups. Autistic participants reported lower rapport when interacting with non-autistic adults, while non-autistic participants reported similar rapport whether interacting with autistic or non-autistic group members. Overall, findings are not consistent with a social deficit model of autism, as autistic adults often established rapport with partners in a group setting. Their level of rapport, however, depended strongly on the social context, particularly whether other autistic people were also in the group.</p>","PeriodicalId":8724,"journal":{"name":"Autism","volume":" ","pages":"13623613251320444"},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2025-02-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143482012","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
AutismPub Date : 2025-02-24DOI: 10.1177/13623613251320448
Aisling Coyle, Liam O'Hare, Devon Ramey
{"title":"Synapse: A co-designed neurodivergent peer support programme for higher education settings.","authors":"Aisling Coyle, Liam O'Hare, Devon Ramey","doi":"10.1177/13623613251320448","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251320448","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Lay abstract: </strong>Neurodivergent students may require support with the social aspects of university life. Peer mentoring describes a relationship where a more experienced student helps a less experienced student by providing advice, support and knowledge. It is an effective way to support students' transition to higher education. This study involved a wide range of stakeholders including neurodivergent students, neurotypical students, disability service staff and researchers in the design of a peer mentoring programme called <i>Synapse</i>. A visual representation of the proposed programme (i.e. logic model) was produced during a workshop with the stakeholders. This visual showed the key outcomes or aims of the programme that was agreed upon by the stakeholders. The workshop was audio recorded and the transcripts were analysed to highlight the main conversation themes. Stakeholders stated that neurodivergent students wanted to feel more connected to others at the university to develop a sense of belonging, they also wanted people to learn more about neurodiversity to reduce stigma and finally, they wanted to feel empowered to take control of their lives and have a voice in decision-making. The two preferred activities of the programme were one-to-one and group mentoring. Uniquely, the participants were concerned with traditional terminology around peer mentoring, in particular the terms mentor and mentee, as it inferred an unequal power dynamic in a relationship. The stakeholders believed that students in the <i>Synapse</i> programme should be valued and treated equally, regardless of diagnosis or experience. Therefore, all members of the <i>Synapse</i> programme were paired within a co-mentoring relationship.</p>","PeriodicalId":8724,"journal":{"name":"Autism","volume":" ","pages":"13623613251320448"},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2025-02-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143481964","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
AutismPub Date : 2025-02-19DOI: 10.1177/13623613251319391
Cristina Vargas, Daniela Paoletti, Simona De Stasio, Carmen Berenguer
{"title":"Sleep disturbances in autistic children and adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.","authors":"Cristina Vargas, Daniela Paoletti, Simona De Stasio, Carmen Berenguer","doi":"10.1177/13623613251319391","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251319391","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Lay abstract: </strong>Sleep disorders are common in people on the autistic spectrum and can affect their development, daily function, and overall well-being. This study examined the effectiveness of non-pharmacological intervention to improve sleep in autistic children and adolescents without intellectual disability. We considered 11 studies of non-pharmacological treatments for autistic children and adolescents. The results indicate that these interventions help to improve several sleep parameters, either by increasing, for example, the total time and quality of sleep, or by reducing the time needed for falling asleep. These approaches offer important treatment options especially for those cases where medication is not feasible, allowing physicians and specialists to propose more targeted and safer solutions for managing sleep difficulties in this population.</p>","PeriodicalId":8724,"journal":{"name":"Autism","volume":" ","pages":"13623613251319391"},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2025-02-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143447832","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
AutismPub Date : 2025-02-17DOI: 10.1177/13623613251316965
Marie Riebel, Raven Bureau, Odile Rohmer, Céline Clément, Luisa Weiner
{"title":"Self-compassion as an antidote to self-stigma and shame in autistic adults.","authors":"Marie Riebel, Raven Bureau, Odile Rohmer, Céline Clément, Luisa Weiner","doi":"10.1177/13623613251316965","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251316965","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Lay abstract: </strong><b>What is already known about the topic?</b>Autistic individuals are frequently exposed to stigmatizing attitudes and discrimination. Negative stereotypes about autism, such as dangerousness or inability to work, are very frequent in our societies. Through exposure to these stigmatizing ideas, autistic people can internalize these ideas and begin to believe them to be true about themselves. This is self-stigma. Past research conducted with non-autistic individuals indicate that self-stigma can lead people to feel ashamed of who they are and deteriorate their mental health.<b>What this paper adds?</b>In this paper, we found that self-stigma in autistic people increases depressive symptoms through feelings of shame. We then showed that relating to self with compassion - that is, to be friendly towards oneself (kindness), be aware of one's feelings and thoughts (mindful awareness) and realize that everyone feels pain and makes mistakes (common humanity) - helps reducing the negatives consequences of self-stigma on mental health. We also demonstrated that camouflaging does not modify the impact of self-stigma on mental health.<b>Implications for practice, research or policy?</b>Because self-compassion can protect from the negative effects of self-stigma, future research should explore how to adapt existing compassion-focused interventions and evaluate their feasibility and efficacy to reduce self-stigma and shame in autistic people.</p>","PeriodicalId":8724,"journal":{"name":"Autism","volume":" ","pages":"13623613251316965"},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2025-02-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143439812","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
AutismPub Date : 2025-02-14DOI: 10.1177/13623613251315985
Christina O'Keeffe, Sinead McNally
{"title":"'Like it's making my heart run': A strengths-based understanding of the play of autistic children.","authors":"Christina O'Keeffe, Sinead McNally","doi":"10.1177/13623613251315985","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251315985","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Lay abstract: </strong>Autistic play is generally described from a deficit perspective where the players themselves have been overlooked. It is important to consult with autistic children themselves about their understanding of play. We asked autistic children about their views on play using many different creative ways that were chosen by the children themselves. We analysed findings using reflexive thematic analysis. Autistic children in this research described play as involving feelings and emotions of pleasure and joy, autonomy and agency, playing by themselves and with others and engagement with materials and activities as meaningful. It is very important that we ask the players themselves what they think about play rather than relying on deficit framed, non-autistic definitions of autistic play. In this article, we will discuss how these findings will help develop future research, theory and practice in respecting children's right to authentic play experiences.</p>","PeriodicalId":8724,"journal":{"name":"Autism","volume":" ","pages":"13623613251315985"},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2025-02-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143424918","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Adaptive behavior and its differences between children with autism spectrum disorder and social communication disorder.","authors":"Deepika Jain, Kawaljit Singh Multani, Anjali Dodiya, Urva Benani, Anand Iyer","doi":"10.1177/13623613251317787","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251317787","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Lay abstract: </strong>This study compared adaptive behavior skills between children with autism spectrum disorder and social communication disorder using the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale-III. The researchers analyzed data from 232 children with autism spectrum disorder and 90 with social communication disorder. Key findings showed that children with social communication disorder demonstrated significantly better adaptive functioning across all areas compared to those with autism spectrum disorder. The largest differences were seen in communication and social skills. However, both groups still showed impairments compared to typical development, especially in expressive language. The study also found that younger children with lower overall adaptive behavior scores were more likely to be diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. In addition, there was a higher proportion of males in the social communication disorder group than the autism spectrum disorder group. These results highlight important differences between autism spectrum disorder and social communication disorder, supporting their classification as distinct disorders. The findings emphasize the need for comprehensive adaptive behavior assessment during diagnosis and tailored interventions for each condition. Early identification and targeted support may be particularly crucial for children with autism spectrum disorder.</p>","PeriodicalId":8724,"journal":{"name":"Autism","volume":" ","pages":"13623613251317787"},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2025-02-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143405605","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
AutismPub Date : 2025-02-11DOI: 10.1177/13623613251317780
Alyssa M Hernandez, Diondra Straiton, David S Mandell, Brooke Ingersoll, Samantha Crabbe, Sarah Rieth, Melanie Pellecchia
{"title":"Short report: Associations of family characteristics and clinicians' use of caregiver coaching in early intervention.","authors":"Alyssa M Hernandez, Diondra Straiton, David S Mandell, Brooke Ingersoll, Samantha Crabbe, Sarah Rieth, Melanie Pellecchia","doi":"10.1177/13623613251317780","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251317780","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Lay abstract: </strong>There is a high demand for quality early intervention services for autistic children and their families. A key part of effective early intervention is teaching caregivers how to support their child's development through caregiver-mediated interventions. However, in publicly funded programs, these strategies are often not followed correctly. Some studies suggest that family characteristics may influence how well clinicians apply these coaching methods. In this study, we explored the connection between family factors, like household income and language spoken at home, and the way clinicians coached families. We found that clinicians used coaching strategies less consistently with both lower- and higher-income families compared to middle-income ones. In addition, families that spoke only English at home received less consistent coaching than those who spoke other languages. These findings highlight the complex relationship between family background and how early intervention services are delivered, suggesting a need for further research.</p>","PeriodicalId":8724,"journal":{"name":"Autism","volume":" ","pages":"13623613251317780"},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2025-02-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143389903","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}