AUTHOR=Zukerman Gil , Yahav Gili , Ben-Itzchak Ester 

TITLE=After one year in university; a robust decrease in autistic traits reporting among autistic students

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychiatry

VOLUME=Volume 14 - 2023

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1146819

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1146819

ISSN=1664-0640

ABSTRACT=Background: The moderate improvement reported in previous research tapping enrolment of autistic student in university transition support programs is usually related to changes in anxiety/depression or adaptive behavior. However, alterations in autistic traits were not examined. Methods: This longitudinal study evaluated changes in university students’ autistic trait and state/trait anxiety levels. Participants were 24 neurotypically developed (ND) students with high levels of social anxiety symptoms (High SA), 30 ND students with low levels of SA symptoms (Low SA), and 41 autistic students (the focus of this study) residing with an ND peer student mentor as part of participating in the university's integration support program. Autism spectrum quotient (AQ, Baron-Cohen et al., 2001) and State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI; Spielberger & Gorsuch, 1983) data were collected at the first semester of two consecutive academic years (T1, T2), as well as baseline (T1) levels of social anxiety, depression, and obsessive-compulsive symptoms. Results: Significant interaction between group and time was observed, denoting a sharp decrease (2.9 SD) from T1 to T2 in the overall autistic trait level among the autistic group (AQ "attention switching" subscale demonstrating the most robust decrease), and a moderate decrease (.5 SD) among the high SA group. Only for the autistic students were more compulsive symptoms at T1 associated with a lesser decrease in their AQ scores (T1-T2), which in turn was negatively correlated with their T1 year-end grade point average. Conclusion: The findings suggest that attending post-secondary education is followed by a profound change of the individual's subjective experience of autism, characterized by a sharp decline in the level of autistic traits, particularly in attention switching. This change is independent if alterations in well-being  indices such as anxiety, that characterizes attending university.