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By Lisa Rapaport
(Reuters Health) – Autistic children are more likely to be bullied from a brother or sister in early adolescence, which could cause more psychological and social problems, according to a new study.
Although sibling bullying during childhood has long been badociated with an increased risk of developing various mental health problems in adolescence, research to date has not given such a clear picture of This is done specifically for young people with autism, noted researchers in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.
For the present study, researchers followed 231 young autistic and 8,180 without the childhood disorder in early adolescence. Intimidation between siblings was much more prevalent at the age of 11 and involved about 64% of children with autism and 48% of children without diabetes. At age 14, bullying decreased, affecting 36% of children with autism and 33% of children without.
"The number of sibling bullying cases is down from 11 to 14 years for children with and without autism," said Umar Toseeb, lead author of the study and researcher at the University of New York. University of York in the United Kingdom.
"But kids with autism are always more likely to bully both ways," Toseeb said by e-mail. "And being involved in bullying between siblings at the age of 11 is badociated with more emotional and behavioral difficulties at the age of 14."
The first symptoms of autism can vary, but can include repetitive behaviors such as the hand flapping or swaying of the body, extreme resistance to routine changes and sometimes aggression or l? self-harm. Behavioral, educational, speech therapy may help reduce the severity of autism symptoms in some children – but some symptoms may still lead to social and emotional behavior difficulties until adolescence and adolescence. adulthood.
To understand the impact of bullying on the lives of autistic and non-autistic children, researchers asked how often their siblings and clbadmates took it or deliberately hurt them, and how often they were the perpetrators of such acts.
The researchers also asked the parents about the emotional and behavioral difficulties of the children, for example if the child was unhappy, discouraged or agitated.
Whether autistic or not, children involved in sibling intimidation were more likely to experience emotional and behavioral difficulties, the study revealed.
But as sibling intimidation disproportionately affects children with autism, they could be harder hit by this long-term exposure, the authors conclude. This is especially true for autistic children who are being bullied between siblings at home and peer-to-peer bullying at school.
As sibling bullying disproportionately affects autistic children, researchers are demanding more resources to help autistic children and their parents identify and respond to bullying behaviors at home, especially earlier in life. l & # 39; childhood.
The study was not designed to prove whether or how bullying could have a direct impact on emotional or behavioral health, or how it might happen differently for children with autism.
Even then, the findings suggest that parents need to recognize the difference between normal sibling quarrels and bullying, which may imply persistent psychological abuse and not necessarily physical aggression, notes L & # 39; study team.
"Persistent conflicts between siblings may indicate sibling bullying and this should not be considered a normal stage of growth," said Toseeb.
SOURCE: https://bit.ly/2Ya94JO Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, online July 22, 2019.
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