Prevalence, structure and correlates of anxiety-depression in boys with an autism spectrum disorder.
Parent and boy ratings draw different maps of anxiety-depression in ASD, so always gather both.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Bitsika et al. (2016) asked two questions. What does anxiety-depression look like in boys with autism? Do parents and boys describe it the same way?
They gave rating scales to parents and to the boys themselves. Then they ran factor analysis to see which symptoms clump together for each informant.
What they found
The two sets of answers did not match. Parent factors and boy factors lined up differently. Each informant showed unique patterns of anxiety and depression.
Because the structures differ, one rating alone would miss information. You need both sides to see the full picture.
How this fits with other research
Bitsika et al. (2015) found the same split for anxiety only. Parent and boy reports gave different profiles and the gap widened with age. The 2016 paper extends that work by adding depression and showing the mismatch holds for the combined construct.
Lerner et al. (2012) already showed that depression symptoms in boys with ASD vary by informant. Bitsika et al. (2016) confirm that finding and map the symptom clusters with statistics instead of raw scores.
Cramm et al. (2009) saw that parents rate more psychiatric problems than teachers. Vicki’s team now show parent versus self is just as uneven, underscoring that context and viewpoint shape every rating.
Why it matters
If you screen for anxiety or depression in boys with ASD, collect both parent and self-ratings. Treat the two forms as complementary, not redundant. When scores clash, probe settings, communication style, and coping behaviors before you pick an intervention target.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Comorbidity of anxiety and depression predicts impaired treatment outcomes, poor quality of life and increased suicide risk. No study has reported on a combined measure of anxiety-depression in boys with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. AIMS: To explore the prevalence, underlying factor structure and relationships between anxiety-depression, physiological stress and symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). METHODS: 150 boys (aged 6-18 years; IQ M=94.9, range=73-132) with an ASD plus their parents (135 mothers, 15 fathers) completed scales about the boys' anxiety and depression, and the boys provided samples of their saliva in the morning and afternoon. Parents also completed the ASD Behaviour Checklist about the boys' ASD symptoms. RESULTS: The two sources of ratings were not significantly different for prevalence of anxiety-depression but the factor structures varied between the parents' and boys' responses, with a four-factor solution for the boys' ratings and a three-factor solution for the parents' ratings. There were also differences in the correlations between cortisol and anxiety-depression and between ASD symptoms and anxiety depression across the boys' and parents' data. CONCLUSIONS: Assessment of anxiety and depression comorbidity from parents and from children with an ASD themselves could provide a valuable adjunct datum when diagnosing ASD.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2016 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2015.11.011