Accessibility navigation


Conceptualizing and treating social anxiety in Autism Spectrum Disorder: a focus group study with multidisciplinary professionals

Spain, D., Rumball, F., O'Neill, L., Sin, J., Prunty, J. and Happé, F. (2017) Conceptualizing and treating social anxiety in Autism Spectrum Disorder: a focus group study with multidisciplinary professionals. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 30 (S1). pp. 10-21. ISSN 1360-2322

[img]
Preview
Text - Accepted Version
· Please see our End User Agreement before downloading.

401kB

It is advisable to refer to the publisher's version if you intend to cite from this work. See Guidance on citing.

To link to this item DOI: 10.1111/jar.12320

Abstract/Summary

Background Individuals who have autism spectrum disorders (ASD) commonly experience social anxiety (SA). Disentangling SA symptoms from core ASD characteristics is complex, partly due to diagnostic overshadowing and co-occurring alexithymia. Causal and maintaining mechanisms for SA in ASD are underexplored, but it is feasible that there is an ASD specificity to the clinical presentation, with implications for the development of targeted treatments. Methods Five focus groups were conducted with multidisciplinary professionals to investigate their perspectives about, and approaches to, working with individuals with ASD and SA. Data were analysed thematically. Results Data analysis revealed two overarching themes: conceptualizing SA in ASD and service provision. Our results suggest that adaptations to service provision are pertinent, so as to accommodate inherent impairments that can mediate assessment and intervention. Conclusions Future studies should establish how aspects of the care pathway can be improved for individuals with ASD and SA.

Item Type:Article
Refereed:Yes
Divisions:Life Sciences > School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences > Psychopathology and Affective Neuroscience
ID Code:71141
Publisher:Wiley

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year

University Staff: Request a correction | Centaur Editors: Update this record

Page navigation