Continuity and change in loneliness and stress during the COVID-19 pandemic: A longitudinal study of autistic and non-autistic adults.
Anke M Scheeren, Patricia Howlin, Liz Pellicano and 2 others
PMID 35930166WHAT IT FOUND
Autistic adults reported significantly higher loneliness and stress than non-autistic adults during lockdowns.
However, average levels in both groups remained stable from the first to the second lockdown. Perceived social support, not the quantity of social contacts, was the strongest predictor of lower stress and loneliness.
Key findings
01Autistic adults reported significantly more loneliness and stress than non-autistic adults at both lockdown assessments, with medium to large effect sizes.
02Group average loneliness and stress levels remained stable from pre-lockdown to lockdown, and from the first to the second lockdown, despite large individual variability in change.
03Higher perceived social support predicted lower stress and loneliness, while the actual frequency of social contacts was not a significant predictor.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study relied on self-report data from the Netherlands Autism Research database, which overrepresents autistic women, those with high educational levels, and those diagnosed in adulthood. This limits applicability to autistic individuals with intellectual disabilities or childhood diagnoses. The pre-lockdown baseline (T0) was collected in March 2020, after the pandemic had already begun globally, so 'pre-lockdown' stress and loneliness may have already been elevated. Non-autistic adults were not assessed at T0, so changes from pre-lockdown to lockdown could not be compared between groups. Attrition was significant between T1 and T2, with only 66% of autistic and 47% of non-autistic participants completing the follow-up. The study did not measure other potential stressors like stigmatization or loss of therapy, which may have influenced results.
Declared interests
Funding was provided by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) and the Autism Research Centre at the University of Cambridge. The authors declared no competing interests.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that the lockdown had no impact on mental health because group averages remained stable. The stability masks large individual differences, with some participants experiencing significant increases in distress while others improved. Additionally, do not assume that increasing the number of social contacts will reduce loneliness; the study found that perceived social support, not contact frequency, was the significant predictor.