20526
Executive Function, Anxiety, and Depression and Their Relationship to Core Social Difficulty in College Students with an ASD Diagnosis
Little is known about the characteristics of students with an ASD entering college or what factors significantly impact their transition. Adolescents and adults with an ASD tend to have poor executive function (Hill, 2004) and are at greater risk for anxiety and depression (Howlin, et al., 2000; Ghaziuddin, et al., 1998). Limited research exists regarding EF difficulty, anxiety, and depression in a high-functioning group of college students with an ASD diagnosis or how these challenges relate to their core symptoms.
Objectives:
The purpose of the current project is to: 1.) Provide updated information regarding a database for the long-term study of social, emotional, behavioral, academic, and EF skills in individuals with HFA at a major public university; 2.) Examine the characteristics of students with an ASD diagnosis who are entering college, focusing primarily on EF skills, anxiety, and depression, for the purpose of documenting strengths and weaknesses that may impact the college transition.; 3) Examine the relationship among these comorbid difficulties and core ASD symptomatology.
Methods:
The current study includes 16 students enrolled in a college support program for degree-seeking students with an ASD diagnosis at a public university. Each student is administered a battery of measures at summer orientation and the end of each Fall and Spring semester. The battery of measures includes parent-report measures (i.e., the BRIEF, SRS-2), self-report measures (i.e., the BASC-2, STAI, BDI-II, SRS-2, Brief Multidimensional Life Satisfaction Measure, and the Student Adjustment to College Questionnaire), information provided as part of the application process (i.e., previous testing, prior GPA), and their GPA and the end of each semester.
Results:
Preliminary analyses completed on the first 3 cohorts entering college between 2012 and 2014 indicated a mean Full Scale IQ of 114. SRS-2 scores confirm significant social difficulty (mean total SRS score = 72.13). Overall, 31% of the sample reported mild to moderate symptoms of depression on the BDI-II (<10), 40% reported elevated state Anxiety on the STAI, and 44% reported elevated levels of trait anxiety. The results of the BRIEF indicated significant difficulty in the areas of metacognition and behavior regulation (mean T-scores: 61.17 and 64.19, respectively). Specifically, the greatest difficulty appeared on the shift subscale (mean=65.74), the initiate subscale (mean=65.06), the plan/organize subscale (mean=63.81), and the Task monitor subscale (mean=64.19). Correlations between these three areas and core symptoms as measured by the SRS-2, indicated that EF and depression were significantly correlated with repetitive behaviors (r=.651, p=.009; r=.577, p=.024). Higher levels of depression and poorer EF skills were associated with greater levels of repetitive behavior. An additional 6-7 data points will be collected allowing for examination of these challenges as they relate to academic performance and adaptation to college over time.
Conclusions:
Overall, these results indicate that despite average or better intelligence, college students with an ASD diagnosis experience greater difficulty in the areas of EF, anxiety, and depression than the general population. Correlation analyses indicate that EF and depression may be related to greater levels of repetitive behaviors in individuals with an ASD diagnosis.