Social network centrality is the social position of a person in a social network. The more friendships or social connections they have in the network, the higher the centrality. A low level of...Show moreSocial network centrality is the social position of a person in a social network. The more friendships or social connections they have in the network, the higher the centrality. A low level of social network centrality is often thought to be related to feelings of loneliness. Yet there is still a lot of discussion if this is also the case for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Thus, this study examined the level of loneliness as well as the level of social network centrality in children with ASD, compared to their peers without ASD, and the relation between these two aspects in special education settings. Children with ASD were expected to show a lower level of social network centrality than children without ASD. However it was expected that children with ASD would not feel lonelier than their peers without ASD. Thus, while it was expected that a lower level of centrality relates to a higher level of loneliness in children without ASD, this was not expected for children with ASD. This study compared a group of 47 children with ASD and a group of 52 children without ASD, aged from 8 to 13 years old (M= 10.806; SD = 1.266), in a special education primary school setting. Loneliness was measured with the Children’s Loneliness Scale, and the centrality was measured in a “Like to Play” measure and was based on the number of friendship nominations a child received. ANOVA showed that the children with ASD did not show a significantly lower level of social network centrality nor feel lonelier than their peers without ASD. A hierarchical regression showed no significant relations between social network centrality and the level of loneliness in the two groups. Based on the results of this study children with ASD in an inclusive environment might be more socially central and less lonely than expected.Show less
Research master thesis | Developmental Psychopathology in Education and Child Studies (research) (MSc)
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Background: Empathy deficits are evident in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Conduct Disorder (CD), and are linked to distinct brain structural abnormalities. Criticisms over the years highlight...Show moreBackground: Empathy deficits are evident in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Conduct Disorder (CD), and are linked to distinct brain structural abnormalities. Criticisms over the years highlight that the DSM classifications of psychiatric disorders are primarily based on observable signs and symptoms, insufficiently based on causes and (neuro)biology, and rather ignorant of heterogeneity and overlap in symptoms. The current study therefore aimed for classification of ASD and CD in adolescents, based on brain morphology (BM) and social-emotional functioning (SEF). Methods: The sample included boys with ASD (n = 23) or CD (n = 51), and typically developing boys (TD; n = 36), aged 15-19 years. Participants’ empathy, aggression, psychopathy, problem behaviours, social function/cognition, and brain morphology (using an MRI scanning) were assessed. For the prediction of ASD and CD, a predictive regression with cross-validation comparing three models was performed, followed by several LASSO regressions. For clustering participants, K-means clustering was used with three clusters and K determined by the CH-index and ARI, followed by ANOVAs, T-tests and checking nestedness with crosstabs. Results: ASD and CD DSM-5 diagnoses can most accurately be predicted with a model based on SEF data, and least accurately with a model based on BM data. When using only SEF data, similar to the DSM, classification is erroneous in approximately one fifth of the participants. For an optimal prediction of ASD and CD, a combination of background, SEF, and BM variables is necessary. None of the cluster-solutions, theory-driven (three clusters) or data-driven (SEF data: four clusters; BM data: five clusters), were congruent with the original DSM clustering (ASD, CD, and TD). Conclusion: The current study shows that data-driven classification, based on BM and/or SEF, is not sufficiently accurate or congruent with the DSM classifications. This suggests that the DSM classifications, which are mainly based on SEF data, do not capture ASD and CD well enough. In order to better capture these disorders, combining factors across multiple domains (including background and BM data), is necessary. On top of that, this study shows less explored ways of analysing data in the field of social sciences. As such, this study may represent a stepping stone for the development of more accurate classifications with less negative implications.Show less
Background: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impairments in social functioning, as well as repetitive and restrictive interests and behaviors. It is...Show moreBackground: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impairments in social functioning, as well as repetitive and restrictive interests and behaviors. It is diagnosed based on symptom expression. An ASD diagnosis can influence different aspects of the life of an individual, such as eating and sleeping habits. It may also influence the lives of the people close to the diagnosed individual, especially when diagnosed in children. So far, little is known about how ASD symptom expression influences eating and sleeping patterns in five- year-old children as well as their parent’s parental stress levels. Aim: The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the relationship between ASD symptoms, eating and sleeping problems in five-year-old children, and parental stress. Methods: This thesis used online questionnaires filled out by parents of five-year-old children (n = 4588, Mean age = 5.1, SD = .46) to conduct three multiple regression models. Results: The findings supported the hypotheses (H1) that ASD symptom severity is associated with more problematic eating habits in five-year-old children; (H2) that ASD symptom severity is associated with more sleep problems in five-year-old children; (H3) that ASD symptom severity is associated with more parental stress in parents of five-year- old children. All results were reported with small effect sizes. Conclusion: ASD symptoms in five-year-old children had a small negative effect on eating and sleeping habits in children, and increased parental stress in their parents.Show less
Background: Emotion recognition is essential for social functioning and communication. Research has shown that when adolescents with conduct disorder (CD) also show high callous-unemotional traits ...Show moreBackground: Emotion recognition is essential for social functioning and communication. Research has shown that when adolescents with conduct disorder (CD) also show high callous-unemotional traits (CU+), they are slower in recognizing negative emotions. Moreover, adolescents with CD/CU+ are limited in affective empathy and they are less fearful of punishment. On the other hand, autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with a lesser ability to recognize emotions of others in an accurate manner. Besides that, in contrast to CD/CU+, they are impaired in the cognitive aspects of empathy. Aim: This study aims to gain knowledge regarding emotion recognition of adolescents, diagnosed with either ASD or CD/CU+. Specifically, this study focuses on the speed and accuracy negative emotions are recognized with. Additionally, the relationship between diagnostics and emotional processing is researched, and whether cognitive or affective empathy moderate this relationship. The latter aspect has not been studied yet in current literature. Method: The sample consisted of 48 boys between 15 and 19 years (M = 17.2), either boys with ASD (N = 23) or boys with CD/CU+ (N = 25). Using a socio-emotional computer task, fearful and angry faces were presented, and participants were requested to recognize the emotional state. Results: In contrast to earlier findings, results showed that emotion recognition accuracy did not differ between boys with CD/CU+ and boys with ASD. However, there was a difference found in reaction time: boys with CD/CU+ showed a faster reaction time to angry faces than boys with ASD. Finally, empathy did not moderate the relationship between diagnostics and emotion recognition. Conclusion: It can be concluded that boys with CD/CU+ and ASD recognize angry emotions differently. Although further research is recommended, this study emphasizes the importance of adjusting interventions to specific abilities and impairments of the individual, which can increase the efficacy.Show less
Abstract: Several studies have reported on the co-occurrence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and gender dysphoria (GD), especially during adolescence. A specific treatment program for Dutch...Show moreAbstract: Several studies have reported on the co-occurrence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and gender dysphoria (GD), especially during adolescence. A specific treatment program for Dutch adolescents with comorbid ASD and GD remains absent, while difficulties with self-worth and psychological wellbeing play a major role for this minority group. The current study investigates the effectiveness of a peer support group on the self-worth and psychological complaints of adolescents, using a pre- and post-test design. A total of 26 adolescents, 16 boys (61,5%) and 10 girls (38,5%) aged 13 to 24 (M = 18,92, SD = 2,30), were included. To assess self-worth and psychological complaints self-report questionnaires CBSA and SCL-90-R are used respectively, prior to and after finishing the intervention. A dependent t-test was used to compare the means of the measurement regarding self-worth and psychological complaints before and after the intervention took place. Results indicated that psychological complaints significantly reduced (t(22) = 2,56, p = ,02), while no effect was found on self-worth. A linear regression was used to test psychological complaints as a predictor of the effectiveness regarding self-worth. A trend was found in the positive direction, F(1,15) = 3,60, p = ,08. A higher level of psychological complaints in the pre-test predicts more overall improvement on self-worth. The results need to be interpreted with caution because of the small sample size and the absence of an experimental study design. Nevertheless, the research on the intervention contributes to the limited knowledge on treatment for adolescents with comorbid ASD and GD and shows significant reduction of psychological complaints after participating in the intervention, while taking the needs of adolescents with ASD and GD in regard.Show less
Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are often not included in social interactions. This is mainly because non-autistic people frequently misunderstand them and because of this do not...Show moreChildren with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are often not included in social interactions. This is mainly because non-autistic people frequently misunderstand them and because of this do not accept, or even reject and dismiss them (Cage et al., 2018). This can make social participation for children with ASD unpleasant and stressful, even though social participation is vital for their development (Eisenberg et al., 1998; Kawachi & Berkman, 2001). To date, only a few studies have examined the impact of limited access to school participation on the psychosocial development of school-aged children with ASD. Furthermore, one may wonder whether certain factors, e.g., individual, family, or school factors, could influence the relation between social participation and psychosocial functioning in children with ASD. To address this gap of knowledge, this study examined the relation between social participation and psychosocial functioning of Dutch children with ASD aged between 4 and 16 years. Furthermore, this study explored whether and to what extent children’s individual characteristics such as IQ, their family characteristics such as parent self-efficacy, and the school characteristics, such as the social environment of the school, could moderate this relation. Two hundred parents of children with ASD from different areas of the Netherlands filled in questionnaires to report about their children’s socioemotional development through the online platform NAR (Dutch Autism Register). The results showed that the more children with ASD participated in social interactions, the fewer psychosocial problems they had. Higher parent self-efficacy predicted fewer psychosocial problems in children with ASD. However, no moderating effects were found. The current study highlights the importance of promoting social participation at school for children with ASD. It also highlights the importance of providing support to the parents of children with ASD and increasing these parents’ self-confidence in supporting their child with ASD.Show less
Background The number of students with an autism diagnosis is increasing at university. Previous research has shown that those students experience lower levels of social support. Previous research...Show moreBackground The number of students with an autism diagnosis is increasing at university. Previous research has shown that those students experience lower levels of social support. Previous research has also shown a positive link between social support and academic performance. However, there is limited research on this topic. Aim To explore the relationship between social support and academic performance in university students, and to check whether this relationship is mediated by stress, perceived self-competence, depression, or anxiety, and moderated by an autism diagnosis. Design and method Online survey. 222 university students (aged 18-56), 59 with an autism diagnosis (aged 18-39), and 163 without an autism diagnosis (aged 18-56), completed multiple questionnaires assessing participants’ academic performance, perception of their competence to do their class work, stress related to studying at university, anxiety, depression, and social support. Participants were recruited at Dutch universities. Results There was no relationship between social support and stress, perceived self-competence, depression or anxiety. There was no relationship between stress, perceived self-competence, depression or anxiety and academic performance. Autism diagnosis moderated the relationship between social support and depression, and the relationship between social support and anxiety. Limitations The results are reliant on self-reports. A snowball procedure was used for recruitment, which may have caused the sample to be unrepresentative. Conclusion Considering the differences in findings to previous research and the limited amount thereof, it remains unclear whether a relationship between social support and academic performance in students with autism is present, and whether the relationship is mediated by stress, perceived self-competence, depression or anxiety. Future research should examine gender differences, as well as a combination of different constructs.Show less
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Conduct disorder (CD) have somewhat similar symptoms. Both are characterized by problems with cognitive empathy, but CD is also characterized by problems with...Show moreAutism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Conduct disorder (CD) have somewhat similar symptoms. Both are characterized by problems with cognitive empathy, but CD is also characterized by problems with affective empathy. Research has shown that problems with affective empathy can be linked to aggression. CD is characterized by aggression, both proactive and reactive, but this is not clear for ASD. Current research was conducted to answer the question: On what aspects do ASD and CD differ from each other and from a control (CON) group, considering empath and aggression? A sample of 112 boys participated in the study. They were divided into three groups based on the diagnosis of CD, ASD or no diagnosis (CON). They were asked to fill in the Basic Empathy Scale (BES) and the Reactive-Proactive Agression Questionaire (RPQ). A distinction was made between affective and cognitive empathy and a total empathy score, and between proactive and reactive aggression and a total aggression score. The results showed that CD had more problems with empathy, specifically affective empathy, than ASD compared to CON. CD showed a higher score on aggression, on both subscales and the total score, than both ASD and CON. ASD did not differ from CON on any of the variables. These results support previous research in which it was stated that there is an association between problems with affective empathy and aggression in children with CD. This association was not found for ASD. It is suggested that future research should investigate possible factors that could be of influence on the absence of this relation between empathy and aggression for ASD.Show less
University students face different challenges throughout their university life. Their ability to cope with difficult situations influences their academic performance. Students with ASD are likely...Show moreUniversity students face different challenges throughout their university life. Their ability to cope with difficult situations influences their academic performance. Students with ASD are likely to face more challenges in university as a result of their autistic symptoms. Additionally, they may experience more difficulties employing effective coping strategies to manage difficult situations compared to students without ASD. This study explored the relationship between primary coping style and academic performance. Differences in primary coping style between university students with and without ASD were also examined. This study also investigated the relationship between primary coping style, autism diagnosis, and academic performance. Students with a clinical diagnosis of autism completed the AQ-Short to assess autistic symptoms. Students’ primary coping style was examined based on their scores on the subscales of the Brief-COPE. Academic performance was measured by students’ grade point average for the current academic year. Results showed, primary coping style was associated with academic performance. Problem-focused and emotion-focused primary coping styles were associated with better academic performance compared to avoidance primary coping style. Additionally, students with ASD were more likely to employ emotion-focused primary coping style or avoidance primary coping style, whereas students without ASD were more likely to employ problem-focused primary coping style. However, autism diagnosis did not moderate the relationship between primary coping style and academic performance. These findings suggested a link between primary coping style and academic performance, as well as differences in coping between students with and without ASD. Limitations and implications for future research were also discussed.Show less
Bachelor thesis | Film- en literatuurwetenschap (BA)
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Contemporary works of young adult literature (YAL) often contain characters with disabilities. This thesis analyses disability in YAL and focuses on the themes 'dementia' and 'autism'. The first...Show moreContemporary works of young adult literature (YAL) often contain characters with disabilities. This thesis analyses disability in YAL and focuses on the themes 'dementia' and 'autism'. The first chapter examines the representation of dementia in YAL by comparing Lisa Genova's Still Alice, a work of adult fiction, to Lara Avery's The Memory Book, a work of YAL. The second chapter analyses the representation of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in YAL and compares Graeme Simsion's The Rosie Project, a work of adult fiction, to Francisco Stork's Marcelo in the Real World, a work of YAL.Show less
There are indications that children with autism have difficulties with emotion regulation. Therefore, the emotion regulation strategies of children with autism in comparison with typically...Show moreThere are indications that children with autism have difficulties with emotion regulation. Therefore, the emotion regulation strategies of children with autism in comparison with typically developing children were the target of this study. Because the development of emotion regulation skills is highly dependent on the influence of the mother, the empathy of the mother was also examined. The differences in emotion regulation strategies between children with autism and a non-clinical control group and the relationship with the empathy of the mother were tested in a laboratory session at Centre for Autism. The sample consisted of 53 mothers with their children, divided into a clinical group of children with autism (N = 19) and a non-clinical control group (N = 34). The age of the children varied between 41 and 81 months, with a mean of 56.91 months (SD = 11.27). To measure the emotion regulation strategies, the children were exposed to an anxiety-provoking situation: the Mechanical Toy Paradigm. The empathy of the mother was determined by the self-assessment questionnaire Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Children with autism showed significantly more avoidance and non-constructive emotion regulation strategies than children in the control group. No difference was found in the use of constructive emotion regulation strategies between children with autism and the control group. Mothers from the clinical group and control group did not differ in the degree of empathy. There was no significant correlation between empathy of the mother and emotion regulation strategies of the child. Conclusion: children with autism have difficulties with regulating their emotions and this was not related to empathy of the mother. There is a need for future research on the behave of improving emotion regulation strategies for children with autism. Interventions could include co-emotion regulation of the mother, because children with autism also seem to view their mother as a source of assistance.Show less
Research master thesis | Developmental Psychopathology in Education and Child Studies (research) (MSc)
open access
2020-08-06T00:00:00Z
Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are characterized by communication deficits. Emotions are part of interpersonal communication and adequate use of emotions are vital for successful...Show moreChildren with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are characterized by communication deficits. Emotions are part of interpersonal communication and adequate use of emotions are vital for successful interaction. To see if children with ASD express emotions to the same extent, we compared 17 children with ASD (age range: 3-6 years) to 33 typically developing children of the same age on both on behavioral emotion expression and on psychophysiological arousal. The behavioral expression and psychophysiological parameters of emotion (heart rate and skin conductance level) were continuously measured during rest and a fear inducing paradigm. The groups did not differ on the intensity of negative or positive emotion expression. The ASD group had lower skin conductance levels during rest compared to the typically developing children and a more pronounced increase in psychophysiological arousal in response to a fear paradigm. To integrate these two separate measures of emotion, the concordance between the behavioral and psychophysiological components was evaluated. Negative emotions were related to heart rate in the ASD group and to skin conductance in the control group, but the strength of the correlation did not differ significantly between the two groups. Considering the health and behavioral risks associated with abnormal levels of emotional arousal, the specific effects of deviant emotional arousal in children with ASD need to be further explored. Targeting psychophysiological levels of arousal in interventions might be an effective approach to ameliorate challenging behavior in children with ASD.Show less
Volgens de huidige literatuur wordt verondersteld dat kinderen met stoornissen uit het Autistisch Spectrum (ASS) en verstoorde ontwikkeling van taal en Theory of Mind hebben (ToM). In dit onderzoek...Show moreVolgens de huidige literatuur wordt verondersteld dat kinderen met stoornissen uit het Autistisch Spectrum (ASS) en verstoorde ontwikkeling van taal en Theory of Mind hebben (ToM). In dit onderzoek is gekeken of taal en ToM samenhangen met een gebrekkige sociaal (wederkerig) gedrag, een criteria van ASS (DSM-IV-TR). Er is weinig informatie beschikbaar over hoe de criteria gedefinieerd in de DSM in relatie staan tot factoren als ToM en taal. ToM is in dit onderzoek gemeten met de SCVT, de taalvaardigheden met de CELF “Complexe Taalproductie”, CELF “Woordassociaties” en WISC “Woordassociaties”. Het sociaal gedrag is gemeten met de ADI-R. Er participeerden 35 kinderen tussen de 8 en 15 jaar gediagnosticeerd met ASS. De controle groep bestond uit 85 kinderen tussen de 9 en 14 jaar. De resultaten van dit onderzoek toonden aan dat kinderen met ASS een gestoorde ontwikkeling van ToM en taal hebben. Tegen de verwachtingen in hadden ToM en taal geen samenhang met het sociaal gedrag. Een mogelijke verklaring hiervoor is dat ToM gemeten met de SCVT niet altijd generaliseerbaar is naar het dagelijks leven. Daarnaast kunnen de taalvaardigheden van kinderen zich anders uiten in een testsetting in vergelijking met de alledaagse praktijk. Als laatste dient er ook rekening gehouden te worden met de psychometrische eigenschappen van de ADI-R, die wellicht een verband aantonen bemoeilijken.Show less
This study investigated the adaptive skills of children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in comparison to normal developing children and to children with comorbid ADHD and ADHD/ODD-CD. The...Show moreThis study investigated the adaptive skills of children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in comparison to normal developing children and to children with comorbid ADHD and ADHD/ODD-CD. The sample consisted of parents of children aged 4-12 years (Mage 8.58 years; SD = 2.26). In the study two questionnaires were used; the ‘Adaptieve Vragenlijst voor Jeugdigen’ (AVJ) to measure the general adaptive skills in children, and the Social Emotional Questionnaire (SEV) to measure disorder symptoms. Results showed lowe adaptive scores of children with ASD and/or comorbid ADHD or ODD-CD on the AVJ-subscales a. relation with peers, b. relation with parents, c. focus on school, work and future, and d. self-direction, when compared to normally developing children. Regardless of comorbidity, the skills that were the severest impaired in children with autism were related to competently and maintaining relationships with peers and recognizing emotions in peers. Competently maintaining relationships with adults is the least impaired skill in children with autism, meaning they can flexibly handle contacts with parents, teachers and authorities. Age, gender and cultural background did not interact with these differences and similarities. In children with autism the adaptive skills accounted for respectively 44% of the explained variance of social functioning as measured with the SEV. This implicates that there are possible other factors associated to the disorder related adaptive behaviors of children with ASD. Further research should focus on intelligence as a contributing variable, for IQ seems to be a strong predictor of adaptive behavior. And as the grading of adaptive behavior is influenced by the expectations of the people who grade them, an implication would be that questionnaires should be completed by teachers as well as by parents.Show less
Het Klinefelter Syndroom (47,XXY) wordt geassocieerd met een verhoogde kwetsbaarheid tot het ontwikkelen van Autisme Spectrum Stoornis (ASS) kenmerken. Daarnaast lijken individuen met het...Show moreHet Klinefelter Syndroom (47,XXY) wordt geassocieerd met een verhoogde kwetsbaarheid tot het ontwikkelen van Autisme Spectrum Stoornis (ASS) kenmerken. Daarnaast lijken individuen met het Klinefelter Syndroom moeite te hebben met executief functioneren. Het doel van het onderzoek was het verband tussen ASS-kenmerken en non-verbale executieve functies binnen het Klinefelter Syndroom te onderzoeken. Gekeken is naar mentale flexibiliteit en werkgeheugen. In totaal namen 68 participanten met het Klinefelter Syndroom (24 kinderen en 44 volwassenen) en 62 gezonde participanten (24 kinderen en 38 volwassenen), gematcht op leeftijd en opleidingsniveau, deel aan het onderzoek. ASS-kenmerken werden gemeten met de Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ). Executieve functies zijn gemeten met de Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). Jongens en mannen met het Klinefelter Syndroom vertoonden meer ASS-kenmerken dan de controlegroep. Daarnaast had de totale Klinefeltergroep, vergeleken met de controlegroep, specifiek beperkingen met mentale flexibiliteit. Er was geen verschil tussen beide groepen betreffende het werkgeheugen. Binnen de Klinefeltergroep correleerde de AQ-totaalscore positief met mentale flexibiliteit. Volwassenen met het Klinefelter Syndroom hebben specifiek problemen met mentale flexibiliteit. Binnen het Klinefelter Syndroom is een positief verband aangetoond tussen de aanwezigheid van ASS-kenmerken en mentale flexibiliteit. Des te meer ASS-kenmerken een persoon met het Klinefelter Syndroom vertoont, des te meer problemen er zijn met mentale flexibiliteit. Het executief functioneren lijkt binnen het Klinefelter Syndroom een cognitief mechanisme te zijn, hetgeen zorgt voor kwetsbaarheid tot het ontwikkelen van psychopathologie op het gebied van autisme, alsmede op het gebied van schizofrenie en ADHD.Show less
