The association between COVID-19, personal wellbeing, depression, and suicide risk factors in Australian autistic adults.
COVID-19 slightly worsened depression and wellbeing in autistic adults but did not increase suicide risk, though autistic women showed tighter mood-risk links.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team sent an online survey to 252 autistic adults across Australia.
They asked how COVID-19 had touched their lives, then measured mood, wellbeing, and suicide risk with standard checklists.
The survey ran from July to November 2020, the first wave of the pandemic.
What they found
Small drops in wellbeing and small rises in depression were tied to pandemic stress.
Suicide risk stayed flat; COVID-19 worries did not push it higher.
Autistic women showed stronger links between low mood and both poor wellbeing and higher suicide risk than autistic men.
How this fits with other research
Nijhof et al. (2025) later showed the same Australian group had 30-60 % higher COVID-19 hospital and death rates.
Together the papers paint a full picture: the virus hit autistic bodies harder, yet their suicide risk did not climb.
Gundeslioglu et al. (2025) found higher suicidality among autistic UK students.
The difference is likely age and timing: undergraduates face academic stress, while the 2020 adults faced lockdown but also rapid online support.
Why it matters
You can reassure autistic clients that pandemic-style stress may dent mood, yet it does not automatically raise suicide risk.
Still, screen autistic women more closely, since their mood and risk ties are stronger.
Pair your mental-health checks with medical vigilance—follow Dewy’s lead and urge vaccination and early infection care.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the mental health and wellbeing of the world's population, with particularly negative effects on vulnerable populations, including autistic people. Although some consensus regarding specific impact on aspects of wellbeing and mental health in autism is starting to emerge, it is unclear whether the pandemic has increased suicide risk. The goals of this study were to examine (a) potential associations between COVID-19 impact and depression, personal wellbeing, and suicide risk factors in Australian autistic adults and (b) age and gender effects. The COVID-19 Impact Scale (CIS), Personal Wellbeing Index, Patient Health Questionnaire, and the Suicide Behavior Questionnaire, Revised (SBQ-R), were administered to 111 autistic adults aged 20 to 71 years during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. COVID-19 impact showed small associations with poorer personal wellbeing (r = -0.224, p = 0.023, [-0.409, -0.016]) and higher depressive symptoms (r = 0.268, p = 0.006, [0.056, 0.445]) and was not associated with the SBQ-R suicide risk score (r = 0.081, p = 0.418, [-0.118, 0.264). No significant effects were identified for age. Although model results were similar for women and men, the strength of the associations between personal wellbeing and depression (z = -2.16, p = 0.015), and depression and SBQ-R suicide risk (z = 1.961, p = 0.025), were stronger in women than in men. Qualitative analysis of an open response question from the CIS suggested that the pandemic had both positive and negative impacts on participants. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a large impact on the mental health and wellbeing of the world's population, particularly vulnerable populations such as autistic people. It is not known if these impacts on mental health and wellbeing have increased suicide risk. Our findings suggest that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic may be associated with poorer wellbeing and higher depression, but is not associated with suicide risk. Overall, autistic people reported both positive and negative impacts of the pandemic on their lives.
Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research, 2021 · doi:10.1016/S2352-4642(20)30095-X