Cognitive Flexibility Mediates the Associations Between Perceived Stress, Social Camouflaging and Mental Health Challenges in Autistic Adults / Matthew J. HOLLOCKS in Autism Research, 18-8 (August 2025)  

Public ISBD [article]  inAutism Research > 18-8 (August 2025) . - p.1595-1607 Titre : Cognitive Flexibility Mediates the Associations Between Perceived Stress, Social Camouflaging and Mental Health Challenges in Autistic Adults Type de document : Texte imprimé et/ou numérique Auteurs : Matthew J. HOLLOCKS, Auteur ; Goldie A. MCQUAID, Auteur ; Nancy R. LEE, Auteur ; Gregory L. WALLACE, Auteur Article en page(s) : p.1595-1607 Langues : Anglais (eng) Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : ABSTRACT Autistic people are at an elevated risk of experiencing co-occurring anxiety and depression. The contributors to this are likely multifaceted and complex and remain poorly understood. Cognitive flexibility, social camouflaging, and perceived stress provide useful indices of the interacting neurocognitive, behavioral, and environmental factors that have been associated with anxiety and depression in autistic individuals. Here, we test if cognitive flexibility, as the factor most closely related to individual differences in thinking styles, mediates the relationships between social camouflaging, perceived stress, and anxiety/depression. This study included 806 autistic individuals aged between 18 and 83?years (Mean age?=?40.2), recruited through the Research Match service of the Simons Powering Autism Research (SPARK) participant registry. Participants completed an online battery of questionnaires measuring cognitive and social flexibility, social camouflaging, perceived stress, anxiety, and depression. Parallel mediation analyses were used to test the mediating effect of cognitive and social flexibility. Across separate parallel mediation analyses, cognitive flexibility was found to significantly mediate the relationships between both social camouflaging and perceived stress with anxiety and depression. This was contrasted with social flexibility, which showed a lower magnitude mediating effect for perceived stress and no mediating effect of social camouflaging. Cognitive flexibility plays an important mediating role between the impact of both perceived stress and social camouflaging on greater symptoms of both anxiety and depression in autistic adults. En ligne : https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.70061 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=566 [article] Cognitive Flexibility Mediates the Associations Between Perceived Stress, Social Camouflaging and Mental Health Challenges in Autistic Adults [Texte imprimé et/ou numérique] / Matthew J. HOLLOCKS, Auteur ; Goldie A. MCQUAID, Auteur ; Nancy R. LEE, Auteur ; Gregory L. WALLACE, Auteur . - p.1595-1607. Langues : Anglais (eng) in Autism Research > 18-8 (August 2025) . - p.1595-1607 Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : ABSTRACT Autistic people are at an elevated risk of experiencing co-occurring anxiety and depression. The contributors to this are likely multifaceted and complex and remain poorly understood. Cognitive flexibility, social camouflaging, and perceived stress provide useful indices of the interacting neurocognitive, behavioral, and environmental factors that have been associated with anxiety and depression in autistic individuals. Here, we test if cognitive flexibility, as the factor most closely related to individual differences in thinking styles, mediates the relationships between social camouflaging, perceived stress, and anxiety/depression. This study included 806 autistic individuals aged between 18 and 83?years (Mean age?=?40.2), recruited through the Research Match service of the Simons Powering Autism Research (SPARK) participant registry. Participants completed an online battery of questionnaires measuring cognitive and social flexibility, social camouflaging, perceived stress, anxiety, and depression. Parallel mediation analyses were used to test the mediating effect of cognitive and social flexibility. Across separate parallel mediation analyses, cognitive flexibility was found to significantly mediate the relationships between both social camouflaging and perceived stress with anxiety and depression. This was contrasted with social flexibility, which showed a lower magnitude mediating effect for perceived stress and no mediating effect of social camouflaging. Cognitive flexibility plays an important mediating role between the impact of both perceived stress and social camouflaging on greater symptoms of both anxiety and depression in autistic adults. En ligne : https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.70061 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=566

Measuring flexibility in autistic adults: Exploring the factor structure of the flexibility scale self report / Goldie A. MCQUAID ; Benjamin E. YERYS ; John F. STRANG ; Laura G. ANTHONY ; Lauren KENWORTHY ; Nancy R. LEE ; Gregory L. WALLACE in Autism Research, 16-11 (November 2023)  

Public ISBD [article]  inAutism Research > 16-11 (November 2023) . - p.2208-2219 Titre : Measuring flexibility in autistic adults: Exploring the factor structure of the flexibility scale self report Type de document : Texte imprimé et/ou numérique Auteurs : Goldie A. MCQUAID, Auteur ; Benjamin E. YERYS, Auteur ; John F. STRANG, Auteur ; Laura G. ANTHONY, Auteur ; Lauren KENWORTHY, Auteur ; Nancy R. LEE, Auteur ; Gregory L. WALLACE, Auteur Article en page(s) : p.2208-2219 Langues : Anglais (eng) Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : Abstract Cognitive flexibility differences are common for autistic individuals and have an impact on a range of clinical outcomes. However, there is currently a lack of well validated measurement tools to assess flexibility in adulthood. The Flexibility Scale was originally designed as a parent-report measure of real-world flexibility challenges in youth. The original Flexibility Scale provides a total score and five subscales: Routines and Rituals, Transitions and Change, Special Interests, Social Flexibility, and Generativity. In this study, we evaluate the factorial validity of the Flexibility Scale as a self-report (Flexibility Scale Self Report) measure of cognitive flexibility, adapted from the original Flexibility Scale, for use by autistic adults. This study includes both a primary sample (n=813; mean age=40.3; 59% female) and an independently recruited replication sample (n=120; mean age=32.8; 74% female) of individuals who completed the Flexibility Scale Self Report. The analysis consisted of an initial confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the original Flexibility Scale structure, followed by exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and factor optimization within a structural equation modeling framework to identify the optimal structure for the questionnaire in adults. The identified structure was then replicated through CFA in the replication sample. Our results indicate an alternative optimal scale structure from the original Flexibility Scale, which includes fewer items, and only three (Routines/Rituals, Transitions and Change, Special Interests) of the five subscales contributing to the flexibility total score. Comparisons revealed no structural differences within the scale based on sex assigned at birth. Here the Generativity and Social Flexibility scales are treated as independent but related scales. The implications for measurement of cognitive flexibility in clinical and research settings, as well as theoretical underpinnings are discussed. En ligne : https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3025 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=517 [article] Measuring flexibility in autistic adults: Exploring the factor structure of the flexibility scale self report [Texte imprimé et/ou numérique] / Goldie A. MCQUAID, Auteur ; Benjamin E. YERYS, Auteur ; John F. STRANG, Auteur ; Laura G. ANTHONY, Auteur ; Lauren KENWORTHY, Auteur ; Nancy R. LEE, Auteur ; Gregory L. WALLACE, Auteur . - p.2208-2219. Langues : Anglais (eng) in Autism Research > 16-11 (November 2023) . - p.2208-2219 Index. décimale : PER Périodiques Résumé : Abstract Cognitive flexibility differences are common for autistic individuals and have an impact on a range of clinical outcomes. However, there is currently a lack of well validated measurement tools to assess flexibility in adulthood. The Flexibility Scale was originally designed as a parent-report measure of real-world flexibility challenges in youth. The original Flexibility Scale provides a total score and five subscales: Routines and Rituals, Transitions and Change, Special Interests, Social Flexibility, and Generativity. In this study, we evaluate the factorial validity of the Flexibility Scale as a self-report (Flexibility Scale Self Report) measure of cognitive flexibility, adapted from the original Flexibility Scale, for use by autistic adults. This study includes both a primary sample (n=813; mean age=40.3; 59% female) and an independently recruited replication sample (n=120; mean age=32.8; 74% female) of individuals who completed the Flexibility Scale Self Report. The analysis consisted of an initial confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the original Flexibility Scale structure, followed by exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and factor optimization within a structural equation modeling framework to identify the optimal structure for the questionnaire in adults. The identified structure was then replicated through CFA in the replication sample. Our results indicate an alternative optimal scale structure from the original Flexibility Scale, which includes fewer items, and only three (Routines/Rituals, Transitions and Change, Special Interests) of the five subscales contributing to the flexibility total score. Comparisons revealed no structural differences within the scale based on sex assigned at birth. Here the Generativity and Social Flexibility scales are treated as independent but related scales. The implications for measurement of cognitive flexibility in clinical and research settings, as well as theoretical underpinnings are discussed. En ligne : https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.3025 Permalink : https://www.cra-rhone-alpes.org/cid/opac_css/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=517

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