FACE Lab, Emerson College, 120 Boylston Street, Boston, MA, 02459, USA.
Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Emerson College, Boston, MA, USA.
J Autism Dev Disord. 2017 Dec;47(12):3692-3703. doi: 10.1007/s10803-016-2979-y.
Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often exhibit increased anxiety, even in non-stressful situations. We investigate general anxiousness (anxiety trait) and responses to stressful situations (anxiety state) in 22 adolescents with ASD and 32 typically developing controls. We measured trait anxiety with standardized self- and parent-reported questionnaires. We used a Biopac system to capture state anxiety via skin conductance responses, mean heart rate and heart rate variability during high- and low-anxiety tasks. Results reveal higher trait anxiety in adolescents with ASD (p < 0.05) and no group difference in state anxiety. Increased parent-reported trait anxiety may predict decreased state anxiety during high-stress conditions. Together, these findings suggest that higher trait anxiety may result in dampened physical responses to stress.
自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）患者通常表现出焦虑增加，即使在非压力环境下也是如此。我们研究了 22 名 ASD 青少年和 32 名典型发育对照者的一般焦虑（焦虑特质）和对压力情境的反应（焦虑状态）。我们使用标准化的自我和家长报告问卷来测量特质焦虑。我们使用 Biopac 系统通过皮肤电反应、高低焦虑任务期间的平均心率和心率变异性来测量状态焦虑。结果显示，ASD 青少年的特质焦虑更高（p<0.05），状态焦虑无组间差异。家长报告的特质焦虑增加可能预示着在高压力条件下状态焦虑降低。总之，这些发现表明，较高的特质焦虑可能导致对压力的生理反应减弱。
