Children with Autism spectrum disorder experience internal and external problems at higher rates than a normally developing child. These problems could worsen social impairment, according to the researchers with the Virginia Tech center for Autism Research.
The study published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, compared social impairment scores in 57 children. (3-17 years, 82.5% male) with ASD, either with or without heightened levels of internal issues such as anxiety or external issues such as ADHD symptoms.
Children with heightened anxiety exhibited higher impairment on social cognition, communication, motivation and restricted interest/repetitive behavior.
Children with heightened ADHD traits showed higher impairment on social communication and social awareness.
The research findings suggest similarities and differences in how social deficits in ASD may worsen with anxiety or ADHD symptoms. With co-occurring anxiety, physiological arousal dysregulation may underline emotional problems that can heighten both social avoidance and cognitive rigidity in ASD, while ADHD traits may reflect poor attentional control that reduces social awareness.
In the paper, researchers cite previous studies that found that approximately 40% of children with ASD also have anxiety, and 38% have depression. A previous study also found that between 30 – 50% of children with ASD also have ADHD.
The fact that anxiety and ADHD have been found to occur at higher rates in individuals with ASD, It is important to know the clinical symptoms that may influence social deficits. The results suggest that anxiety and ADHD should be routinely assessed in children with ASD and should be taken into consideration for treatment planning.