A comparison of the content and nature of worries of autistic and neurotypical young people as they transition from school.
Jack Waldman, Ann McPaul, Andrew Jahoda
PMID 35893767WHAT IT FOUND
Autistic teens worry about the same things as neurotypical peers but feel more distress and anxiety.
They specifically fear unexpected routine changes, social skills, and noise. Use concrete discussion tools to explore these worries before transition.
Key findings
01Autistic participants had significantly higher distress and anxiety scores than neurotypical peers, but reported a similar frequency of worrying.
02Autistic young people were markedly more worried about change, friendship, loneliness, school, and sensory matters, while neurotypical peers were more worried about failure, work, health, and money.
03The Worry Interview proved to be an effective way of promoting a discussion about worries with autistic young people.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The sample size was small and the study was not suitably powered to uncover differences in frequency of worry scores. The GAS-ID measure of anxiety has not been validated in an autistic population. Participants may have been reluctant to discuss sensitive topics, and no worries outside the provided cards were raised. The study did not explore the effects of age or gender on worry, nor did it account for individual background factors.
Declared interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest and received no financial support for the research.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that autistic teens worry more often than their peers. The study found no significant difference in the frequency of worry between the groups, only that autistic teens experienced significantly higher levels of distress and anxiety about their worries.