ERIC Number: EJ1307494
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021-Oct
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1362-3613
EISSN: N/A
Perceptions of Social and Work Functioning Are Related to Social Anxiety and Executive Function in Autistic Adults
Woolard, Alix; Stratton, Elizabeth; Demetriou, Eleni A.; Boulton, Kelsie A.; Pellicano, Elizabeth; Glozier, Nick; Gibbs, Vicki; Rogerson, Nicole; Quinn, Philippa; Hickie, Ian B.; Guastella, Adam J.
Autism: The International Journal of Research and Practice, v25 n7 p2124-2134 Oct 2021
Autistic adults report concerns with social skills and unemployment. Despite anxiety and difficulty with executive cognitive skills being associated with autism, no studies to date have investigated relationships between anxiety or executive cognition with social and work functioning. This study aimed to investigate the associations between perceived social anxiety, perceived and objective executive function, and perceived social and work functioning in a sample of autistic people. A total of 62 participants completed self-report questionnaires of social anxiety (via the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale), mental health (via the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale), executive cognition (via the Behaviour Rating Inventory of Executive Function) and perceived social and work functioning (the Work and Social Adjustment Scale), and a smaller subset (n = 36-40) completed performance-based executive function tasks (Trail Making Task and Rapid Visual Processing Task). Participants who reported having more social anxiety and more difficulty with executive cognition also perceived themselves as having poorer social and work functioning. Performance-based executive function was not related to social or work functioning. Our results suggest that perceived social anxiety and executive cognition are both areas that have potential to be targeted to investigate whether they improve social and vocational outcomes for autistic people.
Descriptors: Autism, Pervasive Developmental Disorders, Adults, Anxiety, Executive Function, Cognitive Ability, Interpersonal Competence, Attitudes, Mental Health, Self Concept, Work Environment, Severity (of Disability), Metacognition
SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2814
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A