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Sleep, anxiety and challenging behaviour in children with intellectual disability and/or autism spectrum disorder

Halina Rzepecka1, Karen McKenzie, Iain McClure

  • 1NHS Tayside, Centre for Child Health, 19 Dudhope Terrace, Dundee DD3 6HH, UK.

Research in Developmental Disabilities
|June 25, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Children with intellectual disability (ID) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often experience sleep problems and anxiety. These factors significantly correlate with challenging behaviors (CB) in this population.

Area of Science:

  • Child Psychology
  • Neurodevelopmental Disorders
  • Clinical Psychology

Background:

  • Children with intellectual disability (ID) and/or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit higher rates of sleep problems, anxiety, and challenging behaviors (CB) compared to typically developing children.
  • The interplay between these factors within the ID/ASD population remains underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationships between sleep problems, anxiety, and challenging behaviors (CB) in children with ID and/or ASD.
  • To determine if sleep problems and anxiety predict the variance in CB levels.

Main Methods:

  • Parental questionnaires were used to assess sleep problems, anxiety, and CB in 187 children with ID and/or ASD.
  • Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was employed to examine predictive relationships.

Main Results:

  • Significant positive associations were identified between sleep problems, anxiety, and CB.
  • Medication, sleep problems, and anxiety collectively accounted for 42% of the variance in CB, demonstrating a large effect size.

Conclusions:

  • Sleep problems and anxiety are significant correlates and predictors of challenging behaviors in children with ID/ASD.
  • Clinical interventions for CB in this population should consider co-occurring sleep problems and anxiety for improved efficacy.

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