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Health anxiety in autistic adults
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Galvin, John and Richards, Gareth (2023) Health anxiety in autistic adults. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 104 . 102146. doi:10.1016/j.rasd.2023.102146 ISSN 1750-9467.
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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rasd.2023.102146
Abstract
Background
Health anxiety involves misinterpreting normal bodily sensations as symptoms of a serious illness. No study to date has explored health anxiety in autistic adults. This cross-sectional study had three aims: 1) to examine the levels of health anxiety in autistic and non-autistic adults, 2) to explore sex differences in health anxiety across both subsamples, and 3) to determine whether autistic traits were associated with health anxiety in either or both subsamples.
Method
A cross-sectional self-report questionnaire measuring demographic information (sex, age, ethnicity), diagnostic information, comorbid diagnoses, autistic traits, and health anxiety was distributed to110 autistic and 110 non-autistic adults without intellectual disability.
Results
The findings showed health anxiety to be significantly higher in autistic than non-autistic adults, and significantly higher in females than males in both subsamples. Almost 1 in 3 autistic people reported clinically significant levels of health anxiety. Positive correlations were found between autistic traits and health anxiety in both autistic and non-autistic subsamples, and these relationships remained statistically significantly after controlling for covariates.
Conclusions
This is the first study to investigate health anxiety in a sample of autistic people, and also the first to consider the relationship between autistic traits and health anxiety in both autistic and non-autistic individuals. The findings have both clinical and research implications.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||||
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Subjects: | B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology | ||||||||
Divisions: | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Science > Psychology | ||||||||
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Autism, Autistic people, Illness anxiety disorder , Health attitudes, Sex differences | ||||||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders | ||||||||
Publisher: | Elsevier Inc. | ||||||||
ISSN: | 1750-9467 | ||||||||
Official Date: | June 2023 | ||||||||
Dates: |
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Volume: | 104 | ||||||||
Article Number: | 102146 | ||||||||
DOI: | 10.1016/j.rasd.2023.102146 | ||||||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||||||
Access rights to Published version: | Open Access (Creative Commons) | ||||||||
Date of first compliant deposit: | 29 March 2023 | ||||||||
Date of first compliant Open Access: | 11 April 2023 | ||||||||
RIOXX Funder/Project Grant: |
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