Representation of anxiety-phobic manifestations in the clinic of autism spectrum disorders in preschool children living under conditions of chronic psychosocial stress

Abstract

In this original study to identify variants of anxiety-phobic pathology in children with autism spectrum disorder living under conditions of chronic psychosocial stress (the territory of hostilities in Donbass) 100 preschool children with autism were examined. The sample was divided into two groups depending on the level of psychological age of development (children under 3 years of age and over 3 years of age). The assessment of the overall anxiety score in the surveyed showed that at the psychological age of up to 3 years, anxiety was significantly (p<0.001) lower than in children with a psychological age older than 3 years. Children over 3 years of age have a higher level of fears, indicating mental overstrain. In general, children with autism with a psychological developmental age of up to 3 years had a statistically significantly lower intensity of fears, with the exception of certain phobias, which were more pronounced in this age group. Children with autism spectrum disorder also have more specific phobias, especially those not related to real danger, which can be explained by impaired learning of danger perception, especially in children under 3 years of age.