Sibling relationships and family functioning in siblings of early adolescents, adolescents and young adults with autism spectrum disorder

The purpose of the study was to investigate how family functioning (defined as the ability that family members hold to manage stressful events, and intimate and social relationships), the degree to which family members feel happy and fulfilled with each other (called family satisfaction), and the demographical characteristics of siblings (age and gender) impacted on sibling relationships. The Circumplex Model of Marital and Family Systems and Behavioral Systems constituted the theoretical frameworks that guided our study. Eighty-six typically developing adolescents and young adults having a sister or a brother with autism spectrum disorder were enrolled. Results indicated that the youngest age group (early adolescents) reported to engage more frequently in negative behaviors with their siblings with ASD than the two older age groups (middle adolescents and young adults). No significant differences were found among the three age groups regarding behaviors derived from attachment, caregiving and affiliative systems. Family satisfaction and age significantly predicted behaviors during sibling interactions. Suggestions on prevention and intervention programs were discussed in order to prevent parentification among typically developing siblings and decrease episodes of quarrels and overt conflicts between brothers and sisters with and without AS

Measuring Anxiety in Youth with Learning Disabilities: Reliability and Validity of the Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children (MASC)

Youth with learning disabilities (LD) are at an increased risk for anxiety disorders and valid measures of anxiety are necessary for assessing this population. We investigated the psychometric properties of the Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children (MASC; March in Multidimensional anxiety scale for children. Multi-Health Systems, North Tonawanda, 1998) in 41 adolescents (ages 11– 17 years) with LD. Youth and parents completed the MASC and were administered the semi-structured Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule: Child and Parent Versions (ADIS: C/P; Silverman and Albano in The Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule for DSM-IV-Child and Parent Versions. Psychological Corporation, San Antonio, 1996). Results found that child and parent reports of Social Anxiety on the MASC closely corresponded with ADIS-generated social phobia diagnoses, and parent total scores discriminated well among youth with and without any anxiety disorder. A multi-method multi-trait matrix provided evidence of the construct validity of the MASC total score for both parent and child reports. Our findings provide empirical evidence that parent and child versions of the MASC are useful for assessing anxiety in youth with LD

Sleep Disturbances in Adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Reut Gruber,1,2 Liron Salamon,3 Riva Tauman,4 Michal Al-Yagon3 1Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada; 2Attention, Behaviour and Sleep Lab, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Montreal, QC, Canada; 3Department of School Counseling and Special Education, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; 4Sleep Disorders Center, Tel Aviv Souraski Medical Center, Tel Aviv, IsraelCorrespondence: Reut Gruber, Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada, Email [email protected]: Delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS) and insomnia disorders are prevalent in adolescents and are comorbid with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but only limited information is available regarding the prevalence of DSPS and insomnia in adolescents with ADHD. Moreover, previous studies comparing objective sleep parameters averaged the findings across all participants of each group (ADHD, control) regardless of each individual’s level of reported sleep disturbance. This might have resulted in inconsistency between information obtained by objective and subjective sleep measures in adolescents with ADHD. The objectives of the present study were 1) to compare the prevalence of risk for DSPS and insomnia in adolescents with ADHD and control adolescents in our samples; 2) to compare objectively measured sleep characteristics of adolescents with ADHD and controls while taking into consideration their levels of risk for DSPS or their level of insomnia; and 3) to compare the ADHD symptom levels of adolescents with moderate/high and low risk for DSPS or insomnia.Methods: Seventy-three adolescents (37 ADHD, 36 controls) aged 12– 15 years participated in a cross-sectional study. Actigraphy was used to characterize objective sleep parameters and parents’ or adolescents’ reports were used to characterize subjective sleep parameters.Results: Of the participants in the ADHD and control groups, 33.33% and 27%, respectively, had moderate/high levels of risk for DSPS. Adolescents in the high-risk group for DSPS had an objectively measured delayed sleep schedule and more variable sleep duration, time in bed, and sleep efficiency compared to adolescents in the low-risk group for DSPS, regardless of their ADHD diagnosis. Adolescents with higher levels of insomnia spent more time in bed and had more variable sleep efficiency compared to adolescents with no insomnia, regardless of their diagnosis.Conclusion: The prevalence of moderate/high risk for DSPS was similarly high in adolescents with ADHD and controls. Participants’ subjective reports of sleep disturbances were consistent with their objective sleep parameters when the type and level of subjectively defined sleep disturbance were considered. ADHD symptom levels were not different in adolescents with moderate/high or low risk for DSPS or insomnia.Keywords: delayed sleep phase, insomnia, subjective sleep measures, actigraph

Quality of Relationship with Parents and Emotional Autonomy as Predictors of Self Concept and Loneliness in Adolescents with Learning Disabilities: The Moderating Role of the Relationship with Teachers

The present study aims to investigate the impact of family-level variables (emotional autonomy and the quality of the parents-adolescent relationship) on socio-emotional adjustment (loneliness and self-esteem) in adolescents with learning disabilities (LDs) and the role of the quality of the teacher-adolescent relationship in moderating the effects of these impacts. The participants are 293 typically developing adolescents (TD group) and 50 adolescents with learning disabilities (LD group), aged between 13 and 20. The following measures were administered: the Emotional Autonomy Scale (EAS), the Loneliness and Aloneness Scale for Children and Adolescents (LACA), the Assessment of Interpersonal Relations (AIR), and the Multidimensional Self Concept Scale (MSCS). The data showed that adolescents with LDs display significantly higher levels of peer-related loneliness, and lower levels of self-concept and perceived quality of relationships with parents and teachers. No significant differences emerged between the groups in emotional autonomy and in parent-related loneliness. Path analysis indicated that, in adolescents with LDs, emotional autonomy was more closely related to self-concept than in typically developing adolescents. A positive teacher-adolescent relationship could have a moderating effect on the relationships between the dimension considered only in the LD group. The findings have important implications for the implementation of intervention programs focused on social and emotional competences in young people with LDs