Teens with autism face major obstacles to social life outside of school, study finds
The Autism News | English
“We looked at data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2 (NLTS2), a group of over 11,000 adolescents enrolled in special education,” he says.
“Out of this group, teens with an ASD were significantly more likely never to see friends out of school (43.3 percent), never to get called by friends (54.4 percent), and never to be invited to social activities (50.4 percent) when compared with adolescents from all the other groups.”
The NLTS2 includes groups of adolescents with ASDs, learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities and speech and language impairments.
Shattuck says that these findings show that the majority of adolescents with an ASD experience major obstacles to social participation.
“It appears that experiences with peers are more likely to occur one-on-one, and perhaps at home rather than in the community,” he says.
Shattuck notes that limited or absent peer relationships can negatively influence health and mental health, especially during the teen years.
“One mechanism for promoting social relationships is by fostering participation with peers in group activities such as clubs, scouting, or sports,” Shattuck says.
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