“It’s not about wanting to be thin or look small, it’s about the way it feels”: an IPA analysis of social and sensory differences in autistic and non-autistic individuals with anorexia and their parents

Journal of Eating Disorders

Research

Emy Nimbley¹  Helen Sharpe¹  Karri Gillespie-Smith¹  Fiona Duffy²  Carrie Ballantyne³  Ellen Maloney⁴ 

[1] Department of Clinical Psychology in the School of Health in Social Science, University of Edinburgh, Old Medical School, Elsie Inglis Quadrangle, Teviot Place, EH8 9AG, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK;Department of Clinical Psychology in the School of Health in Social Science, University of Edinburgh, Old Medical School, Elsie Inglis Quadrangle, Teviot Place, EH8 9AG, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK;NHS Lothian Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK;School of Education and Social Sciences, University of the West of Scotland, Glasgow, UK;School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK;

关键词: Autism;    anorexia nervosa;    Parents;    Social;    Sensory;    IPA;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s40337-023-00813-z

 received in 2023-04-13, accepted in 2023-05-24,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundDespite increasing evidence to support an overlap between autism and anorexia nervosa (AN), underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. Social and sensory factors have emerged as promising targets in both autism and AN, however there remains scope to compare these differences across autistic and non-autistic experiences of AN. Drawing on dyadic multi-perspectives, this study explored experiences of social and sensory differences in autistic and non-autistic adults and their parents and/or carers.MethodsUsing interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), dyadic interviews were conducted with 14 dyads, with seven autistic dyads and seven non-autistic dyads. Data analysis was subjected to a triangulation of interpretations: (1) the participants themselves; (2) a neurotypical researcher; (3) and an Autistic researcher with lived/living experience of AN.ResultsIPA identified three themes in each group, with similarities and differences between autistic and non-autistic dyads. Similar themes were identified regarding the importance of social connectedness and socio-emotional difficulties, as well a common lack of trust in the social and sensory self and body. Autism-specific themes centred on feelings of social ‘defectiveness’, disparities between sensing and expressing certain cues, and lifelong, multi-sensory processing differences. Non-autistic themes reflected social comparisons and inadequacy, and sensitivities to the learning of ideals and behaviour through early experiences.ConclusionsWhile similarities were observed across both groups, there appeared to be notable differences in the perceived role and influence of social and sensory differences. These findings may have important implications on the delivery and modification of eating disorder interventions. Specifically, they suggest that while treatment targets may look similar, subtle differences in underlying mechanisms and approaches may be required for Autistic individuals with AN across sensory, emotion and communication-based interventions.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2023

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