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Theses and Dissertations

2020

Autism

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Family, Life Course, and Society

The Association Of Sleep Quality And Loneliness With Perceived Physical And Mental Health Status In Autistic Adults, Nicholas Charles Clark Russell Aug 2020

The Association Of Sleep Quality And Loneliness With Perceived Physical And Mental Health Status In Autistic Adults, Nicholas Charles Clark Russell

Theses and Dissertations

Autistic individuals report a greater prevalence of physical and mental health difficulties, compared to the general population. This study examines factors which impact physical and mental health in the general population to evaluate whether they potentially underlie this increased prevalence in autistic individuals. We compared twenty-two autistic adults, twenty-three adults reporting symptoms of insomnia, and twenty-one neurotypical adults. The primary factors were sleep quality and insomnia; secondary factors were level of autistic traits, alexithymia, and prosocial behavior. Participants completed self-report measures looking at each of these factors as well as their perceived physical and mental health. Participants also wore an …


A Fmri Of Fear Conditioning And Auditory Looming In Autism Spectrum Disorder, David Nicholas Top Jr. Jul 2020

A Fmri Of Fear Conditioning And Auditory Looming In Autism Spectrum Disorder, David Nicholas Top Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Many autistic adults experience debilitating anxiety that interferes with their daily functioning. Atypical sensory processing and intolerance of uncertainty are cognitive processes linked to atypical limbic system functioning and impaired fear conditioning as potential mediators of anxiety in autism. A previous fear conditioning study using fMRI found atypical amygdala functioning in autism when the threat stimulus was only partially reinforced. The first aim of this dissertation is a multimethod examination of brain and psychophysiological response in autistic and in neurotypical adults during a fear conditioning/extinction task with the threat stimulus reinforced 100% percent of the time. We were also interested …