Associations Between Communication Skills and Social Anxiety in Children and Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review.

Purpose: This systematic review examined the association between communication skills and social anxiety in autistic youth = 18 years old. Method: A systematic search was conducted across six databases (PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, Scopus, PsycINFO, Embase, and ProQuest) and gray literature to identify quantitative studies that investigated the relationship between communication skills and social anxiety in autistic youth. This systematic review was registered prospectively on PROSPERO (International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews; Registration No. CRD42023415376). Results: Six studies met the inclusion criteria, comprising a total of 682 autistic participants. Findings suggest a moderate relationship between social anxiety and communication skills, but this association varied depending on the measure used, the cognitive abilities of participants, and the specific communication domains examined. Conclusions: The association between communication skills and social anxiety in autistic youth is complicated and impacted by multiple factors, including measurement heterogeneity, cognitive abilities, and developmental stage. Future research should include larger sample sizes and adopt validated measures tailored for autistic individuals to enhance the consistency of findings and improve the understanding of the relationship between communication skills and social anxiety. Longitudinal studies are also needed to explore how relationships evolve across development. Understanding these associations has important implications for targeted interventions to support autistic individuals with co-occurring social anxiety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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