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BRIEF REPORT Brief Report: Social Skills, Internalizing and Externalizing Symptoms, and Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia in Autism (2013)
BibTeX
@MISC{Neuhaus13briefreport,
author = {Emily Neuhaus and Raphael Bernier and Theodore P. Beauchaine},
title = {BRIEF REPORT Brief Report: Social Skills, Internalizing and Externalizing Symptoms, and Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia in Autism},
year = {2013}
}
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Abstract
Abstract Theoretical and empirical models describe respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) as a peripheral bio-marker of emotion regulation and social competence. Recent findings also link RSA to individual differences in social functioning within autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, associations between RSA and symptoms of internalizing/externalizing psychopathology in ASD have not been explored. We assessed RSA, social functioning, and internalizing/externalizing symptoms among boys with and without ASD. Compared with controls, participants with ASD evidenced reduced parasympathetic cardiac control, which correlated with social behavior. Symptoms were associated with deficiencies in RSA, over-and-above the contribution of social functioning. These findings yield a more nuanced understanding of parasympathetic function in ASD, and suggest a role for integrative intervention strategies that address socioemotional difficulties.
