Introduction
Methods
Socialization is one of the core deficit areas in individuals with High
Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorders (HFASDs)
Obtaining and maintaining friendships can be difficult for this
population
60 Adolescents
14-19 years old
30 with HFASDs
30 without HFASDs
Participants will be matched by:
Age
Gender
Nat’l Autism Prevalence (4 boys: 1 girl)
Demographics of Kansas
There is little research focusing on friendship in adolescents with
HFASDs
The purpose of this study is to build on existing research on
friendships in adolescent aged children with HFASDs
Information will increase knowledge about the nature of friendships
in adolescents with HFASDs and will aid in the design of effective
social skill intervention programs
The Friendship Quality Scales (FQS) (Bukowski, Hoza & Boivin, 1994)
The Clinical Assessment of Interpersonal Relations (CAIR) (Bracken, 2011)
The Activities Questionnaire (AQ) (Solish, Perry & Minnes, 2010)
Survey about the use of technology for communication with friends
Preliminary Findings
1. Adolescents without HFASDs consistently rate the quality and
satisfaction of their interpersonal relationships with their
parents, teachers, and peers in the normal range.
2. Consistency of responses between parents and adolescent
ratings of friendship qualities were also compared, with high
levels of agreement observed between respondents.
o These data indicate that adolescents without HFASDs report
both high quality social relationships across various relevant
figures, and that parents view these relationships similarly.
3. It is hypothesized that adolescents with HFASDs may have key
differences in the nature of these relationships.
Hypotheses and Plan of Analysis
Aim 1: Compare reported friendship quality in
single best friendships of high school students with
HFASD’s to high school students without
HFASD’s.
Hypothesis 1: High school students with HFASD’s
will report friendship quality in single best
friendships similar to that of high school students
without HFASD’s.
Plan of Analysis:
Variable: Quality of Single Best Friendships
Aim 2: Compare overall satisfaction of social and
interpersonal relationships in high school students
with HFASD’s to that of high school students
without HFASD’s
Aim 3: Identify ecological factors that predict level of
overall satisfaction in peer social and interpersonal
relationships in high school students.
Hypothesis 2: High school students with HFASD’s
will report significantly lower overall satisfaction
across social and interpersonal relationships
compared to that of high school students without
HFASD’s.
Hypothesis3: Each of the social participation
variables (the number of extracurricular activities,
number of reported friendships and use of electronic
media for communication) will be significant
predictors of overall satisfaction in peer social and
interpersonal relationships.
Plan of Analysis:
Plan of Analysis:
Variable: Quality of Interpersonal Relationships
Multiple Linear Regression
Analysis: 7 Independent-sample t-tests using each
Analysis: 3 t-tests comparing standard scores on
of the 7 indices from the FQS ( and comparing
the following three indices from the CAIR between
between groups (HFASD and noHFASD)
the two groups (HFASD and noHFASD):
1. Parental Relationships
2. Peer Relationships
3. Total Relationship Index
Dependent Variable: Total Relationship Index from
the CAIR.
Independent Variables:
• Number of Friends
• Number of Extra Curricular Activities
• Use of Electronic Media for Communicating with
others.
o Specifically, adolescents with HFASDs may have unique
qualitative features of their relationships with parents,
teachers, and peers.
o Adolescents with HFASDs may additionally interpret
friendship qualities differently from their parents, providing
insight into the nature of both social relationships and social
understanding in adolescents with HFASDs.
References
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