The Experience of Friendship, Victimization and Bullying in Children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder: Associations with Child Characteristics and School Placement

Elsevier. 6277 Sea Harbor Drive, Orlando, FL 32887-4800. Tel: 877-839-7126; Tel: 407-345-4020; Fax: 407-363-1354; e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: http://www.elsevier.com

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9

Bullying; Autism; Friendship; Interaction; Social Isolation; Victims; Peer Relationship; Pervasive Developmental Disorders; Correlation; Student Characteristics; Student Placement; Preadolescents; Teacher Attitudes; Parent Attitudes; Student Attitudes; Foreign Countries; Incidence

10.1016/j.rasd.2012.03.004

1750-9467

Children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may be vulnerable to social isolation and bullying. We measured the friendship, fighting/bullying and victimization experiences of 10-12-year-old children with an ASD (N = 100) using parent, teacher and child self-report. Parent and teacher reports were compared to an IQ-matched group of children with special educational needs (SEN) without ASD (N = 80) and UK population data. Parents and teachers reported a lower prevalence of friendships compared to population norms and to children with SEN without an ASD. Parents but not teachers reported higher levels of victimization than the SEN group. Half of the children with an ASD reported having friendships that involved mutuality. By teacher report children with an ASD who were "less" socially impaired in mainstream school experienced "higher" levels of victimization than more socially impaired children; whereas for more socially impaired children victimization did not vary by school placement. Strategies are required to support and improve the social interaction skills of children with an ASD, to enable them to develop and maintain meaningful peer friendships and avoid victimization. (Contains 4 tables and 1 figure.)

As Provided

2012

EJ967262