The Prevalence and Psychopathological Correlates of Sibling Bullying in Children with and without Autism Spectrum Disorder.
Umar Toseeb, Gillian McChesney, Dieter Wolke
PMID 29423609WHAT IT FOUND
Children with autism are more likely to be involved in two-way sibling bullying than their peers.
This involvement is linked to higher anxiety, depression, and behavioural problems, regardless of whether the child has autism.
Key findings
01Children with ASD were significantly more likely to be in the 'bully-victim' group (both bullying and being bullied) compared to children without ASD.
02Involvement in sibling bullying was associated with increased internalizing symptoms (anxiety, depression) and externalizing symptoms (behavioural problems), independent of ASD status.
03Having ASD was independently predictive of much higher internalizing and externalizing symptoms and lower prosocial skills, with effects larger than those seen with sibling bullying alone.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
ASD diagnosis was based on parental report and not independently validated by the research team. Sibling bullying data was based on child self-report at a single time point (age 11), which may be subject to recall bias or interpretation differences, especially in children with ASD. The study design is observational and cross-sectional regarding the bullying and psychopathology outcomes at age 11, so causality cannot be definitively established. Information about the siblings themselves (e.g., their ASD status or behaviour) was not collected, limiting the ability to understand the dyadic nature of the conflict.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that sibling bullying is the sole cause of behavioural problems in children with ASD. The study shows that children with ASD have higher baseline levels of internalizing and externalizing symptoms compared to peers, regardless of bullying. While bullying adds to this burden, the primary association with ASD itself is strong and independent.