AbstractsPsychology

Professional Doctorate - Doctorate of Clinical Psychology (DCP) Scope: There is a known strong association between autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and anxiety. There is also a perceived but less well researched link between high-functioning autism (HFA) or Asperger’s disorder and aggressive behaviour. HFA and Asperger’s disorder are autism spectrum disorders where there is no comorbid intellectual disability. Adolescents with autism spectrum disorders have been identified as being at increased risk of early exit from schooling due to behavioural problems. Purpose: The purpose of this research was to investigate the link between anxiety and aggression in adolescents with autism using self-report measures of anxiety and anger and teacher ratings of behaviour. Anger is a primary emotion that is expressed behaviourally as aggression or violence. There are two kinds of anger: reactive anger, which is the immediate response to feelings of fear, frustration or being threatened; and instrumental anger, which is more likely to be goal-directed and malicious. It was hypothesised that aggression in adolescents with autism is characterised by high scores on measures of reactive anger but not instrumental anger, and is related to high scores on measures of anxiety. This would have implications for school policies and procedures for the management and prevention of incidents of aggression by children with autism. Methodology: This research is a correlational study comparing levels of anger, anxiety and aggression in adolescents with autism and in a control group of their typically developing peers matched for age and gender. The research was conducted in 12 high schools in the Hunter Central Coast region of New South Wales, with 105 students participating. Measures used were: • Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale: Second Edition (RCMAS-2) • Adolescent Anger Rating Scale (AARS) • Student Behavior Survey (teacher report). Results: We found significant differences between the students with autism and their typically developing peers on each of the measures of anxiety and anger as well as on teacher-reported behaviour problems. Students with autism are more likely to be suspended from school than their peers. Regression analyses showed that social anxiety is a significant predictor of aggression for students with ASDs, but not for control students. At low levels of social anxiety, levels of physical aggression for ASD students and control group students were equally low. As social anxiety increased, physical aggression also increased for the ASD group but there was no change for the control group. While there was no significant difference in self reported anger control between the ASD group and the control group, the relationship between anger control and physical aggression was different for the two groups. Differing levels of anger control did not affect physical aggression for the control group. For the ASD group, a high level of self-reported anger control skills was associated with low levels of physical aggression. At…