The link between coping styles and depressive symptoms in university students with and without autism

Most research on autism and coping is focused on parents of children with autism. There is a lack of understanding how individuals with autism cope themselves and how it may relate to their mental health. Every year more people with autism enroll into higher education, which calls for a better understanding of the potential difficulties they may face. This study focused on the relationship between autism, primary coping style and depressive symptoms in a sample of university students with and without a diagnosis of autism. A cross-sectional online survey (n = 222) was administered to explore how these factors relate by using multiple questionnaires measuring coping style, depressive symptoms, autism diagnosis and autism symptoms. Results showed that primary coping style was associated with depressive symptoms. Avoidant coping in particular was related to more depressive symptoms. However, there was no significant link between autism diagnosis and depressive symptoms. The study also...Show moreMost research on autism and coping is focused on parents of children with autism. There is a lack of understanding how individuals with autism cope themselves and how it may relate to their mental health. Every year more people with autism enroll into higher education, which calls for a better understanding of the potential difficulties they may face. This study focused on the relationship between autism, primary coping style and depressive symptoms in a sample of university students with and without a diagnosis of autism. A cross-sectional online survey (n = 222) was administered to explore how these factors relate by using multiple questionnaires measuring coping style, depressive symptoms, autism diagnosis and autism symptoms. Results showed that primary coping style was associated with depressive symptoms. Avoidant coping in particular was related to more depressive symptoms. However, there was no significant link between autism diagnosis and depressive symptoms. The study also found that students with autism were more likely to use avoidant and emotion-focused coping styles compared to problem-focused coping. Furthermore, coping style seems to be responsible for higher levels of depressive symptoms in students with autism, and not the autism diagnosis itself. Implications and alternative explanations for these results are discussed, together with suggestions for future research.Show less

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The link between coping styles and depressive symptoms in university students with and without autism