Caregiver Psychological Distress Predicts Temperament and Social-Emotional Outcomes in Infants with Autism Traits

Lacey Chetcuti^{1

2}, Mirko Uljarević^{3

4}, Kandice J Varcin⁵, Maryam Boutrus^{6

7}, Sarah Pillar⁷, Stefanie Dimov⁸, Josephine Barbaro^{6

9}, Cheryl Dissanayake^{6

9}, Jonathan Green^{10

11}, Ming Wai Wan¹², Leonie Segal¹³, Vicky Slonims¹⁴, Andrew J O Whitehouse^{6

7}, Kristelle Hudry⁸; AICES Team

Collaborators, Affiliations

Collaborators

AICES Team:
Teresa Iacono, Murray Maybery, Michelle Renton, Nancy Sadka, Leonie Segal, Scott Wakeling, John Wray

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology and Counseling, School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia. lchetcuti@ltu.edu.au.
² Cooperative Research Centre for Living With Autism (Autism CRC), Brisbane, Australia. lchetcuti@ltu.edu.au.
³ Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford Autism Center, Stanford, California, USA.
⁴ School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Melbourne, Dentistry and Health Sciences, Melbourne, Australia.
⁵ School of Allied Health Sciences, Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia.
⁶ Cooperative Research Centre for Living With Autism (Autism CRC), Brisbane, Australia.
⁷ Telethon Kids Institute, University of Western Australia, Nedlands, Australia.
⁸ Department of Psychology and Counseling, School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia.
⁹ Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre, School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia.
¹⁰ Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
¹¹ Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester Mental Health NHS Trust, Manchester, UK.
¹² Division of Psychology and Mental Health, School of Health Sciences, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
¹³ Australian Centre for Precision Health, Division of Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia.
¹⁴ Evelina Children's Hospital / Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, King's College, London, UK.

PMID: 34216330
DOI: 10.1007/s10802-021-00838-5

Caregiver Psychological Distress Predicts Temperament and Social-Emotional Outcomes in Infants with Autism Traits

Lacey Chetcuti et al. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol. 2021 Dec.

. 2021 Dec;49(12):1669-1681.

doi: 10.1007/s10802-021-00838-5. Epub 2021 Jul 3.

Authors

Collaborators

AICES Team:
Teresa Iacono, Murray Maybery, Michelle Renton, Nancy Sadka, Leonie Segal, Scott Wakeling, John Wray

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology and Counseling, School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia. lchetcuti@ltu.edu.au.
² Cooperative Research Centre for Living With Autism (Autism CRC), Brisbane, Australia. lchetcuti@ltu.edu.au.
³ Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford Autism Center, Stanford, California, USA.
⁴ School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Melbourne, Dentistry and Health Sciences, Melbourne, Australia.
⁵ School of Allied Health Sciences, Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia.
⁶ Cooperative Research Centre for Living With Autism (Autism CRC), Brisbane, Australia.
⁷ Telethon Kids Institute, University of Western Australia, Nedlands, Australia.
⁸ Department of Psychology and Counseling, School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia.
⁹ Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre, School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia.
¹⁰ Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
¹¹ Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester Mental Health NHS Trust, Manchester, UK.
¹² Division of Psychology and Mental Health, School of Health Sciences, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
¹³ Australian Centre for Precision Health, Division of Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia.
¹⁴ Evelina Children's Hospital / Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, King's College, London, UK.

PMID: 34216330
DOI: 10.1007/s10802-021-00838-5

Abstract

Child temperament and caregiver psychological distress have been independently associated with social-emotional difficulties among individuals with autism. However, the interrelationship among these risk factors has rarely been investigated. We explored the reciprocal interplay between child temperament (surgency, negative affectivity, and self-regulation) and caregiver psychological distress in the development of child internalizing and externalizing symptoms, in a cohort of 103 infants showing early autism traits. Caregivers completed questionnaires when children were aged around 12-months (Time 1 [T1]), 18-months (Time 2 [T2]), and 24-months (Time 3 [T3]). Cross-lagged path models revealed a significant pathway from T1 caregiver psychological distress through lower T2 child self-regulation to subsequently greater T3 child internalizing symptoms. No such caregiver-driven pathway was evident through T2 child negative affectivity or in the prediction of T3 child externalizing symptoms. Further, no support was found for temperament-driven pathways through caregiver psychological distress to child social-emotional difficulties. Child surgency was mostly unrelated to caregiver psychological distress and social-emotional difficulties. These findings implicate the need to support the mental health of caregivers with an infant with autism traits in order to enhance the emotion regulation and social-emotional development of their infants.

Keywords: Autism; Caregiver psychological distress; Externalizing; Infants; Internalizing; Temperament.

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References

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Caregiver Psychological Distress Predicts Temperament and Social-Emotional Outcomes in Infants with Autism Traits

Collaborators

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Caregiver Psychological Distress Predicts Temperament and Social-Emotional Outcomes in Infants with Autism Traits

Authors

Collaborators

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Abstract

References

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