NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
Back to results
Peer reviewed Peer reviewed
Direct linkDirect link
ERIC Number: EJ1372705
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2023-Apr
Pages: 10
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1362-3613
EISSN: EISSN-1461-7005
Available Date: N/A
The Impact of a Positive Autism Identity and Autistic Community Solidarity on Social Anxiety and Mental Health in Autistic Young People
Autism: The International Journal of Research and Practice, v27 n3 p848-857 Apr 2023
Autism is increasingly seen as a social identity, as well as a clinical diagnosis. Evidence suggests that autistic adults who have stronger autism social identification have better psychological well-being. Autism is a condition which impacts on social interactions, and so one's sense of autism identification may be particularly important for reducing social anxiety, which is common in autistic adolescents. We aimed to investigate how the subcomponents of autism identification relate to social anxiety in autistic young people. We hypothesised that autistic young people who had a higher satisfaction with their autism identity, and more solidarity with other autistic people, would have better psychological well-being and lower social anxiety. 121 autistic young people between the ages of 15-22 completed questionnaires measuring self-reported autism traits, social anxiety, psychological well-being, and different components of autism social identification. We conducted regression analyses controlling for age, gender, and autism traits. We found that higher autism satisfaction was associated with higher psychological well-being and lower social anxiety. Young people with higher autism solidarity had higher psychological well-being, but there was no significant relationship between solidarity and social anxiety. We conclude that it is important to support autistic young people to develop autism social identification.
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: https://sagepub-com.bibliotheek.ehb.be
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A