Mediating Role of Social Problem-Solving on the Relationship be-tween Autistic Traits and Depression in a Non-Clinical Iranian Sample
-
Zahra Salehzadeh Einabad
,
Mahshid Mojtahedzadeh
,
Elaheh Khalili
,
Barbara Dristchel
,
Bijan Pirnia
Abstract
Background: Research on the role of social problem-solving in the relationship between autistic traits and depression is still in its nascent stage and more detailed research is required.
Methods: We aimed to investigate the mediating role of problem-solving in the relationship between autistic traits and depression. A sample of 376 university students were assessed on depression, problem-solving and autism-spectrum quotient in 2019 at Shahed University, Tehran, Iran.
Results: Social problem-solving played the role of a partial mediator in the relationship between autistic traits and depression. Positive problem orientation and negative problem-solving style fully mediated the effects of autistic traits on depression.
Conclusion: Since people with autistic traits have deficits in problem-solving strategies, they may be vulnerable to symptoms of depression. Increasing the ability of positive problem-solving and decreasing negative problem orientation may serve as a buffer against depression in people with autistic traits.
1. Shattuck PT, Roux AM, Hudson LE, et al (2012). Services for adults with an autism spectrum disorder. Can J Psychiatry, 57(5): 284-91.
2. Baron-Cohen S, Wheelwright S, Skinner R, Martin J, Clubley E (2001). The autism-spectrum quotient (AQ): evidence from Asperger syndrome/high-functioning au-tism, males and females, scientists and mathematicians. J Autism Dev Disord, 31(1): 5-17.
3. Hoekstra RA, Bartels M, Cath DC, Boomsma DI (2008). Factor structure, re-liability and criterion validity of the Au-tism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ): a study in Dutch population and patient groups. J Autism Dev Disord, 38(8): 1555-66.
4. Ruzich E, Allison C, Smith P, et al (2015). Measuring autistic traits in the general population: a systematic review of the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ) in a nonclinical population sample of 6,900 typical adult males and females. Mol Au-tism, 6:2.
5. Best CS, Moffat VJ, Power MJ, Owens DG, Johnstone EC (2008). The boundaries of the cognitive phenotype of autism: theory of mind, central coherence and ambigu-ous figure perception in young people with autistic traits.J Autism Dev Disord, 38(5): 840-7.
6. Ghaziuddin M, Ghaziuddin N, & Greden J (2002). Depression in persons with au-tism: Implications for research and clini-cal care. J Autism Dev Disord, 32 (4): 299–306.
7. Ghaziuddin M (2005). Mental health aspects of autism and Asperger syndrome. 1st ed. Jessica Kingsley Publishers. London, pp.: 24-25.
8. Lugnegård T, Hallerbäck MU, Gillberg C )2011.( Psychiatric comorbidity in young adults with a clinical diagnosis of Asper-ger syndrome. Res Dev Disabil, 32(5): 1910-7.
9. Capps LM, Sigman MD, & Yirmiya N (1995). Self-competence and emotional understanding in high-functioning chil-dren with autism. Dev Psychopathol, 7(1): 137 - 149.
10. Williamson S, Craig J, Slinger R (2008). Ex-ploring the relationship between measures of self-esteem and psychologi-cal adjustment among adolescents with Asperger syndrome. Autism, 12(4): 391-402.
11. Jackson SLJ, Dritschel B (2016). Modeling the impact of social problem-solving def-icits on depressive vulnerability in the broader autism phenotype. RASD, 21(1): 128–38.
12. Rosbrook A, Whittingham K (2010). Autistic traits in the general population: what me-diates the link with depressive and anx-ious symptomatology? RASD, 4(3): 415–424.
13. D’Zurilla TJ, Goldfried MR (1971). Problem solving and behavior modification.J Ab-norm Psychol, 78(1): 107-126.
14. Crick NR, Dodge KA (1994). A review and reformulation of social information-processing mechanisms in children’s so-cial adjustment. Psychol Bull, 115 (1): 74-101.
15. D’Zurilla TJ, Chang EC, Nottingham EJ, & Faccini L (1998). Social problem-solving deficits and hopelessness, depression, and suicidal risk in college students and psychiatric inpatients. J Clin Psychol, 54(8): 1091–1107.
16. Siu AMH, Shek DTL (2010). Social problem solving as a predictor of well-being in adolescents and young adults. Soc Indic Res, 95(3): 393-406.
17. Maydeu-Olivares A, Rodrı´guez-Fornells A, Go´mez-Benito J, D’Zurilla TJ (2000). Psychometric properties of the spanish adaptation of the social problem-solving inventory-revised (SPSI-R). Pers Individ Differ, 29(4): 699–708.
18. Freeth M, Sheppard E, Ramachandran R, Milne E (2013). A cross-cultural compari-son of autistic traits in the UK, India and Malaysia. J Autism Dev Disord, 43(11): 2569-83.
19. Visser MM, Heijenbrok-Kal MH, Spijker AV, Oostra KM, Busschbach JJ, Ribbers GM (2015). Coping, problem solving, depression, and health-related quality of life in patients receiving outpatient stroke rehabilitation. Arch Phys Med Rehabil, 96(8):1492-8.
20. Chang EC, D'Zurilla TJ, Sanna LJ (2004). Social problem solving: Theory, research, and training. 1st ed. American Psychological Association, Washington, pp.: 11-27.
21. Chang EC, D’Zurilla TJD, Sanna LJ (2009). Social problem solving as a mediator of the link between stress and psychological well-being I middle-adulthood. Cognitive Ther Res, 33(1): 33-49.
22. Anderson RJ, Goddard L, owell JH (2011). Social problem-solving and depressive symptom vulnerability: The importance of real-life problem-solving performance. Cognit Ther Res, 35(1): 48–56.
23. Frye AA, Goodman SH (2000). Which So-cial Problem-Solving Components Buffer Depression in Adolescent Girls? Cognit Ther Res, 24(6): 637–650.
24. Leyfer OT, Ruberg JL, Woodruff-Borden J (2006). Examination of the utility of the Beck Anxiety Inventory and its factors as a screener for anxiety disorders. J Anxiety Disord, 20(4): 444-58.
25. Wang Y, Gorenstein C (2013). Psychometric properties of the Beck Depression In-ventory-II: a comprehensive review.Braz J Psychiatry, 35(4): 416–431.
26. Ghassemzadeh H, Mojtabai R, Karamghadiri N, Ebrahimkhani N) 2005(. Psychometric properties of a Per-sian-language version of the Beck De-pression Inventory--Second edition: BDI-II-Persian. Depress Anxiety, 21(4): 185-192.
27. Dobson K, Mohammad Khani P0 (2007). Psychometric properties of Beck Depres-sion Inventory II in patients with major depressive disorder in relative recovery period. USWR. 29: 82-88.
28. Kloosterman PH, Keefer KV, Kelley EA, Summerfeldt LJ, Parker JD (2011). Evalu-ation of the factor structure of the Au-tism-Spectrum Quotient. Pers Individ Differ, 50(2): 310–314.
29. Nejati Safa A, Kazemi Bajestani SMR, Ala-gheband Rad J (2003). Autistic traits in adults population: Evidence for autism continuum hypothesis. New Cognitive Sci-ence, 3(19): 34 -39.
30. Dreer LE, Berry J, Rivera P, et al (2009). Ef-ficient assessment of social problem-solving abilities in medical and rehabilita-tion settings: a Rasch analysis of the So-cial Problem-Solving Inventory-Revised. J Clin Psychol, 65(7): 653-69.
31. D’Zurilla TJ, Maydeu-Olivares A, Gallardo-Pujol D (2011). Predicting Social Problem Solving Using Personality Traits. Pers In-divid Differ, 50(2): 142-147.
32. Sabet M, Taghiloo S, and Jamshidifar Z (2011). Factor structure, reliability and va-lidity of measures of social problem solv-ing: long form revised. Social Research, 4(13); 143-156.
33. Morrison KE, Pinkham AE, Penn DL, et al (2017). Distinct profiles of social skill in adults with autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia. Autism Res, 10(5): 878-887.
34. Frye RE (2018). Social Skills Deficits in Au-tism Spectrum Disorder: Potential Bio-logical Origins and Progress in Develop-ing Therapeutic Agents. CNS Drugs, 32(8): 713-734.
35. Hotton M, Coles S (2016). The Effective-ness of Social Skills Training Groups for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disor-der. Rev J Autism Dev Disord, 3(1): 68–81.
36. Sterling L, Dawson G, Estes A, Greenson J (2008). Characteristics associated with presence of depressive symptoms in adults with autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord, 38(6): 1011–1018.
37. Salehzadeh Einabad Z, Nasiri MR, Barin S, Roshan R (2017). The Relationship be-tween Depression and Broader Autism Phenotype in Nonclinical Population. ZJRMS, 19(9): 115-120.
38. Joshi G, Petty C, Wozniak J, et al (2010). The heavy burden of psychiatric comor-bidity in youth with autism spectrum dis-orders: a large comparative study of a psychiatrically referred population. J Au-tism Dev Disord, 40(11): 1361-70.
39. Nezu AM (1987). A problem-solving for-mulation of depression: A literature re-view and proposal of a pluralistic model. Clin Psychol Rev, 7: 121-144.
40. Kimhi Y, Bauminger-Zviely N (2012). Col-laborative problem solving in young typi-cal development and HFASD. J Autism Dev Disord, 42(9): 1984–1997.
41. Nezu AM, Ronan GF (1988). Social prob-lem solving as a moderator of stress-related depressive symptoms: A prospec-tive analysis. Couns Psychol, 35(2): 134-138.
42. Nezu AM (1986). Efficacy of a social prob-lem-solving therapy approach for unipo-lar depression. J Consult Clin Psychol, 54(2): 196-202.
43. Kant GL, D’Zurilla TJ, Maydeu-Olivares A (1997). Social problem solving as a medi-ator of stress-related depression and anx-iety in middle aged and elderly communi-ty residents. Cognit Ther Res, 21(1): 73–96.
44. Bonner RL, Rich AR (1987). Toward a pre-dictive model of suicidal ideation and be-havior: some preliminary data in college students. Suicide Life Threat Behav, 17(1): 50-63.
45. Attwood T (2000). Strategies for improving the social integration of children with Asperger syndrome. Autism, 4(1): 85-100.
46. Tantam D (2000). Psychological disorder in adolescents and adults with Asperger syndrome. Autism, 4(1): 47-62.
47. Witty TE, Heppner PP, Bernard CB, Thore-son RW (2001). Problem-Solving Ap-praisal and Psychological Adjustment of Persons with Chronic Low-Back Pain. Clin Psychol Med Settings, 8(3): 149–160.
48. Ingersoll B, Hopwood CJ, Wainer A, Don-nellan MBA (2011). A comparison of three self-report measures of the Broader Autism Phenotype in a Non-Clinical Sample. J Autism Dev Disord, 41(12): 1646–57.
2. Baron-Cohen S, Wheelwright S, Skinner R, Martin J, Clubley E (2001). The autism-spectrum quotient (AQ): evidence from Asperger syndrome/high-functioning au-tism, males and females, scientists and mathematicians. J Autism Dev Disord, 31(1): 5-17.
3. Hoekstra RA, Bartels M, Cath DC, Boomsma DI (2008). Factor structure, re-liability and criterion validity of the Au-tism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ): a study in Dutch population and patient groups. J Autism Dev Disord, 38(8): 1555-66.
4. Ruzich E, Allison C, Smith P, et al (2015). Measuring autistic traits in the general population: a systematic review of the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ) in a nonclinical population sample of 6,900 typical adult males and females. Mol Au-tism, 6:2.
5. Best CS, Moffat VJ, Power MJ, Owens DG, Johnstone EC (2008). The boundaries of the cognitive phenotype of autism: theory of mind, central coherence and ambigu-ous figure perception in young people with autistic traits.J Autism Dev Disord, 38(5): 840-7.
6. Ghaziuddin M, Ghaziuddin N, & Greden J (2002). Depression in persons with au-tism: Implications for research and clini-cal care. J Autism Dev Disord, 32 (4): 299–306.
7. Ghaziuddin M (2005). Mental health aspects of autism and Asperger syndrome. 1st ed. Jessica Kingsley Publishers. London, pp.: 24-25.
8. Lugnegård T, Hallerbäck MU, Gillberg C )2011.( Psychiatric comorbidity in young adults with a clinical diagnosis of Asper-ger syndrome. Res Dev Disabil, 32(5): 1910-7.
9. Capps LM, Sigman MD, & Yirmiya N (1995). Self-competence and emotional understanding in high-functioning chil-dren with autism. Dev Psychopathol, 7(1): 137 - 149.
10. Williamson S, Craig J, Slinger R (2008). Ex-ploring the relationship between measures of self-esteem and psychologi-cal adjustment among adolescents with Asperger syndrome. Autism, 12(4): 391-402.
11. Jackson SLJ, Dritschel B (2016). Modeling the impact of social problem-solving def-icits on depressive vulnerability in the broader autism phenotype. RASD, 21(1): 128–38.
12. Rosbrook A, Whittingham K (2010). Autistic traits in the general population: what me-diates the link with depressive and anx-ious symptomatology? RASD, 4(3): 415–424.
13. D’Zurilla TJ, Goldfried MR (1971). Problem solving and behavior modification.J Ab-norm Psychol, 78(1): 107-126.
14. Crick NR, Dodge KA (1994). A review and reformulation of social information-processing mechanisms in children’s so-cial adjustment. Psychol Bull, 115 (1): 74-101.
15. D’Zurilla TJ, Chang EC, Nottingham EJ, & Faccini L (1998). Social problem-solving deficits and hopelessness, depression, and suicidal risk in college students and psychiatric inpatients. J Clin Psychol, 54(8): 1091–1107.
16. Siu AMH, Shek DTL (2010). Social problem solving as a predictor of well-being in adolescents and young adults. Soc Indic Res, 95(3): 393-406.
17. Maydeu-Olivares A, Rodrı´guez-Fornells A, Go´mez-Benito J, D’Zurilla TJ (2000). Psychometric properties of the spanish adaptation of the social problem-solving inventory-revised (SPSI-R). Pers Individ Differ, 29(4): 699–708.
18. Freeth M, Sheppard E, Ramachandran R, Milne E (2013). A cross-cultural compari-son of autistic traits in the UK, India and Malaysia. J Autism Dev Disord, 43(11): 2569-83.
19. Visser MM, Heijenbrok-Kal MH, Spijker AV, Oostra KM, Busschbach JJ, Ribbers GM (2015). Coping, problem solving, depression, and health-related quality of life in patients receiving outpatient stroke rehabilitation. Arch Phys Med Rehabil, 96(8):1492-8.
20. Chang EC, D'Zurilla TJ, Sanna LJ (2004). Social problem solving: Theory, research, and training. 1st ed. American Psychological Association, Washington, pp.: 11-27.
21. Chang EC, D’Zurilla TJD, Sanna LJ (2009). Social problem solving as a mediator of the link between stress and psychological well-being I middle-adulthood. Cognitive Ther Res, 33(1): 33-49.
22. Anderson RJ, Goddard L, owell JH (2011). Social problem-solving and depressive symptom vulnerability: The importance of real-life problem-solving performance. Cognit Ther Res, 35(1): 48–56.
23. Frye AA, Goodman SH (2000). Which So-cial Problem-Solving Components Buffer Depression in Adolescent Girls? Cognit Ther Res, 24(6): 637–650.
24. Leyfer OT, Ruberg JL, Woodruff-Borden J (2006). Examination of the utility of the Beck Anxiety Inventory and its factors as a screener for anxiety disorders. J Anxiety Disord, 20(4): 444-58.
25. Wang Y, Gorenstein C (2013). Psychometric properties of the Beck Depression In-ventory-II: a comprehensive review.Braz J Psychiatry, 35(4): 416–431.
26. Ghassemzadeh H, Mojtabai R, Karamghadiri N, Ebrahimkhani N) 2005(. Psychometric properties of a Per-sian-language version of the Beck De-pression Inventory--Second edition: BDI-II-Persian. Depress Anxiety, 21(4): 185-192.
27. Dobson K, Mohammad Khani P0 (2007). Psychometric properties of Beck Depres-sion Inventory II in patients with major depressive disorder in relative recovery period. USWR. 29: 82-88.
28. Kloosterman PH, Keefer KV, Kelley EA, Summerfeldt LJ, Parker JD (2011). Evalu-ation of the factor structure of the Au-tism-Spectrum Quotient. Pers Individ Differ, 50(2): 310–314.
29. Nejati Safa A, Kazemi Bajestani SMR, Ala-gheband Rad J (2003). Autistic traits in adults population: Evidence for autism continuum hypothesis. New Cognitive Sci-ence, 3(19): 34 -39.
30. Dreer LE, Berry J, Rivera P, et al (2009). Ef-ficient assessment of social problem-solving abilities in medical and rehabilita-tion settings: a Rasch analysis of the So-cial Problem-Solving Inventory-Revised. J Clin Psychol, 65(7): 653-69.
31. D’Zurilla TJ, Maydeu-Olivares A, Gallardo-Pujol D (2011). Predicting Social Problem Solving Using Personality Traits. Pers In-divid Differ, 50(2): 142-147.
32. Sabet M, Taghiloo S, and Jamshidifar Z (2011). Factor structure, reliability and va-lidity of measures of social problem solv-ing: long form revised. Social Research, 4(13); 143-156.
33. Morrison KE, Pinkham AE, Penn DL, et al (2017). Distinct profiles of social skill in adults with autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia. Autism Res, 10(5): 878-887.
34. Frye RE (2018). Social Skills Deficits in Au-tism Spectrum Disorder: Potential Bio-logical Origins and Progress in Develop-ing Therapeutic Agents. CNS Drugs, 32(8): 713-734.
35. Hotton M, Coles S (2016). The Effective-ness of Social Skills Training Groups for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disor-der. Rev J Autism Dev Disord, 3(1): 68–81.
36. Sterling L, Dawson G, Estes A, Greenson J (2008). Characteristics associated with presence of depressive symptoms in adults with autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord, 38(6): 1011–1018.
37. Salehzadeh Einabad Z, Nasiri MR, Barin S, Roshan R (2017). The Relationship be-tween Depression and Broader Autism Phenotype in Nonclinical Population. ZJRMS, 19(9): 115-120.
38. Joshi G, Petty C, Wozniak J, et al (2010). The heavy burden of psychiatric comor-bidity in youth with autism spectrum dis-orders: a large comparative study of a psychiatrically referred population. J Au-tism Dev Disord, 40(11): 1361-70.
39. Nezu AM (1987). A problem-solving for-mulation of depression: A literature re-view and proposal of a pluralistic model. Clin Psychol Rev, 7: 121-144.
40. Kimhi Y, Bauminger-Zviely N (2012). Col-laborative problem solving in young typi-cal development and HFASD. J Autism Dev Disord, 42(9): 1984–1997.
41. Nezu AM, Ronan GF (1988). Social prob-lem solving as a moderator of stress-related depressive symptoms: A prospec-tive analysis. Couns Psychol, 35(2): 134-138.
42. Nezu AM (1986). Efficacy of a social prob-lem-solving therapy approach for unipo-lar depression. J Consult Clin Psychol, 54(2): 196-202.
43. Kant GL, D’Zurilla TJ, Maydeu-Olivares A (1997). Social problem solving as a medi-ator of stress-related depression and anx-iety in middle aged and elderly communi-ty residents. Cognit Ther Res, 21(1): 73–96.
44. Bonner RL, Rich AR (1987). Toward a pre-dictive model of suicidal ideation and be-havior: some preliminary data in college students. Suicide Life Threat Behav, 17(1): 50-63.
45. Attwood T (2000). Strategies for improving the social integration of children with Asperger syndrome. Autism, 4(1): 85-100.
46. Tantam D (2000). Psychological disorder in adolescents and adults with Asperger syndrome. Autism, 4(1): 47-62.
47. Witty TE, Heppner PP, Bernard CB, Thore-son RW (2001). Problem-Solving Ap-praisal and Psychological Adjustment of Persons with Chronic Low-Back Pain. Clin Psychol Med Settings, 8(3): 149–160.
48. Ingersoll B, Hopwood CJ, Wainer A, Don-nellan MBA (2011). A comparison of three self-report measures of the Broader Autism Phenotype in a Non-Clinical Sample. J Autism Dev Disord, 41(12): 1646–57.
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| Issue | Vol 51 No 10 (2022) | |
| Section | Original Article(s) | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.18502/ijph.v51i10.10993 | |
| Keywords | ||
| Social problem-solving Autistic traits Depression | ||
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How to Cite
1.
Salehzadeh Einabad Z, Mojtahedzadeh M, Khalili E, Dristchel B, Pirnia B. Mediating Role of Social Problem-Solving on the Relationship be-tween Autistic Traits and Depression in a Non-Clinical Iranian Sample. Iran J Public Health. 2022;51(10):2340-2349.
