School Social Capital Mediates Associations Between ASD Traits and Depression Among Adolescents in General Population.
Hiroyuki Mori, Tomoya Hirota, Rei Monden and 3 others
PMID 35917022WHAT IT FOUND
Adolescents with more autism-like traits had lower school trust and cohesion and more depression.
School trust and cohesion partly accounted for that association. The association was slightly stronger for girls.
Key findings
01Adolescents with higher ASD traits had lower school social capital and more depression.
02School social capital was a significant mediator of the association between ASD traits and depression.
03The mediated association was significant for both sexes and slightly stronger in females.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
School social capital and depression were measured at the same time point, so the study cannot show that school social capital causes or mediates depression over time. Students without parent-reported ASD trait data were excluded, leaving 3529 of 4235 enrolled, which could introduce selection bias. School social capital was measured only as perceived trust and cohesion, not actual school participation or broader social contexts. Other possible mediators, such as emotion regulation, loneliness, and bullying, were not measured. Only grade and sex were collected as demographic factors, so socioeconomic status and other differences were not considered. The sample came from one region of Japan, so cultural and regional factors may limit generalisation.
Declared interests
Funding was reported from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, and the Hirosaki Institute of Neuroscience. The supplied text does not report any other author conflict of interest disclosures.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the mediation result as proof that improving school social capital will reduce depression. School social capital and depression were measured at the same time, so the study cannot show a causal mediating effect.