Center on Child Health, Behavior and Development, Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Autism Res. 2024 Jan;17(1):55-65. doi: 10.1002/aur.3054. Epub 2023 Nov 21.
Differences in social motivation underlie the core social-communication features of autism according to several theoretical models, with decreased social motivation among autistic youth relative to neurotypical peers. However, research on social motivation often relies on caregiver reports and rarely includes firsthand perspectives of children and adolescents with autism. Furthermore, social motivation is typically assumed to be constant across social settings when it may actually vary by social context. Among a sample of 58 verbally fluent youth (8-13 years old; 22 with autism, 36 neurotypical), we examined correspondence between youth and caregiver reports of social motivation with peers and with adults, as well as diagnostic group differences and associations with social outcomes. Results suggest youth and caregivers provide overlapping but distinct information. Autistic youth had lower levels of social motivation relative to neurotypical youth, and reported relatively consistent motivation toward peers and adults. Youth self- and caregiver-report were correlated for motivation toward adults, but not toward peers. Despite low correspondence between self- and caregiver-reported motivation toward peers, autistic youths' self-report corresponded to caregiver-reported social skills and difficulties whereas caregiver-report of peer motivation did not. For neurotypical youth, self- and caregiver-reported motivation toward adults was correlated, but motivation by both reporters was largely independent of broader social outcomes. Findings highlight the unique value of self-report among autistic children and adolescents, and warrant additional work exploring the development, structure, and correlates of social motivation among autistic and neurotypical youth.
根据几个理论模型，社会动机的差异是自闭症的核心社交沟通特征的基础，自闭症青少年的社会动机相对低于神经典型同龄人。然而，社会动机的研究通常依赖于照顾者的报告，很少包括自闭症儿童和青少年的第一手观点。此外，社会动机通常被假设为在社交环境中保持不变，但实际上可能因社交环境而异。在 58 名语言流利的青少年（8-13 岁；22 名自闭症，36 名神经典型）的样本中，我们研究了青少年和照顾者对同伴和成年人的社会动机的报告与诊断组差异之间的一致性，以及与社会结果的关联。结果表明，青少年和照顾者提供了重叠但不同的信息。自闭症青少年的社会动机水平相对低于神经典型青少年，并且对同伴和成年人的动机相对一致。青少年自我和照顾者报告对成年人的动机是相关的，但对同伴的动机则不然。尽管自我和照顾者报告的同伴动机之间的一致性较低，但自闭症青少年的自我报告与照顾者报告的社交技能和困难相对应，而照顾者报告的同伴动机则没有。对于神经典型的青少年，自我和照顾者报告的对成年人的动机是相关的，但两者的动机在很大程度上与更广泛的社会结果无关。研究结果强调了自闭症儿童和青少年自我报告的独特价值，需要进一步探索自闭症和神经典型青少年社会动机的发展、结构和相关性。
