Title: Anxiety Levels in Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder Making the Transition from Primary to Secondary School
Abstract: The anxiety levels of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) over the period of transition from primary to secondary school are investigated. A repeated measures design and an adapted version of a self-report measure, the Spence Children's Anxiety Scale (SCAS), are used to compare the anxiety levels of eight students before and after the transfer. Analysis at the individual level of the sub-scale scores using the adapted SCAS against the standardised norms in two studies involving community samples reveals a mixed picture. These findings suggest that individual differences are a significant feature. Limitations of the research and possible avenues for future research are considered. Implications for supporting students with ASD in schools are outlined. Having Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 4th considered to be a lifelong developmental dis- edition (DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Associ ability which has a pervasive impact on how an ation, 2000). individual makes sense of the world and inter- Enhanced anxiety levels in individuals with acts with other people. The term Autism Spec- ASD are a recognized clinical feature that may trum Disorder is used in this paper to embrace result from a range of factors such as an indi a range of diagnostic labels including classical vidual's difficulty in dealing with social situa autism, atypical autism and Asperger's Syn- tions due to social interaction and communi drome. Wing and Gould, in their 1979 Cam- cation impairments; problems coping with berwell (London) study into the prevalence of changes in the environment and hence the autism in children with special needs, identi- need for routine; and responses to sensory fied children who did not fit with previous experiences (Attwood, 1998; Howlin, 1998). A conceptualizations of autism as described perceived link between an individual's diffi originally by Kanner in 1943 (Kanner, 1943; culty in coping with change and insistence on Wing & Gould, 1979). They proposed a maintenance of routines and levels of anxiety broader spectrum of conditions, hence autism has been of interest to wrilers and researchers spectrum, and coined the term triad of impair- in ^ fidd for many In ^ on - ,
Publication Year: 2012
Publication Date: 2012-06-01
Language: en
Type: article
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Cited By Count: 16
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