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Author Spotlight: Unveiling the Connection Between Sleep Disorders and Cognitive Symptoms in Depression
Published on: April 26, 2024
Autism Traits and Cognitive Performance: Mediating Roles of Sleep Disturbance, Anxiety and Depression
Gaynor E McArthur1, Eunro Lee1, Robin Laycock2
1School of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University, Plenty Rd, Bundoora, VIC, Australia.
Abstract:
Theories about autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have addressed cognitive deficits however few have examined how comorbid diagnoses, including sleep disturbance, anxiety and depression contribute to the underlying deficits. We investigated potential mediations of common ASD comorbidities in the relationship between sub-clinical autism traits and cognitive performance using an international community sample. Cognitive tasks assessed working memory [executive functioning (EF) theory], mental state attribution [theory of mind (ToM)], and global/local visual processing [weak central coherence (WCC) theory]. Structural equation modelling (SEM) demonstrated sleep disturbance and anxiety mediated the relationship of autism traits on measures of EF, but not WCC and ToM. This suggests that treating the symptoms of sleep disturbance and anxiety may lead to improvements in working memory.
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