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Handbook of Autism and Anxiety pp 171–183Cite as

Treating Transdiagnostic Processes in ASD: Going Beyond Anxiety

Part of the Autism and Child Psychopathology Series book series (ACPS)

Abstract

This chapter aims to provide a concise overview of the modifications considered necessary for an intervention for anxiety in children with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders (HF/ASD). There is growing literature that describes the types of programs available and recommended modifications for children with ASD and anxiety and we provide a review of those programs that are reporting significant improvements. The chapter then moves to consider the fact that children with HF/ASD often present with multiple difficulties, the basis of which is frequently emotion dysregulation. It is likely that the strategies used to manage these difficulties will have similarities with those used for anxiety. It is also the case that programs may need to be developed with these overlapping problems taken into account. The chapter proceeds to outline how this could be achieved with some examples presented from a program that is already moving in this direction—the Secret Agent Society.

Keywords

  • Anxiety treatment
  • Autism
  • Emotion dysregulation
  • Transdiagnostic treatment

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Psychology, University of Queensland, McElwain Building, 4072, St. Lucia, QLD, Australia

    Kate Sofronoff Ph.D. & Renae Beaumont Ph.D.

  2. York University, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Jonathan A. Weiss Ph.D.

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  1. Kate Sofronoff Ph.D.
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  2. Renae Beaumont Ph.D.
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  3. Jonathan A. Weiss Ph.D.
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Correspondence to Kate Sofronoff Ph.D. .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Louisiana State University Department of Psychology, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA

    Thompson E. Davis III

  2. Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA

    Susan W. White

  3. Department of Psychology, Virginia Tech Child Study Center, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA

    Thomas H. Ollendick

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Sofronoff, K., Beaumont, R., Weiss, J. (2014). Treating Transdiagnostic Processes in ASD: Going Beyond Anxiety. In: Davis III, T., White, S., Ollendick, T. (eds) Handbook of Autism and Anxiety. Autism and Child Psychopathology Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-06796-4_12

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