(PS11-D90) Caregiver Perceptions of Their Children’s Special Interests: A Qualitative Study of Autistic Youths

Autistic youths frequently engage in intense, repetitive, or unusual interests, known as special interests (SIs). Broadly, SIs in autistic youths have been linked with several advantages (e.g., a sense of pride, social interaction) and disadvantages (e.g., social isolation). However, less work has explored the attributes of specific SIs, such as whether certain SIs are viewed positively or negatively, or if they can be adaptive or problematic. Moreover, relatively little work has explored how youths engage in SIs (i.e., modalities), and the attributes of those modalities. 

The present study examined caregiver perceptions of SIs. Caregivers of autistic youths (N = 200; M age = 9.54, SD = 4.30; 80.5% male) completed the 31-item Special Interests Survey, in which caregivers (a) endorse whether their child engages in a given SI category (e.g., construction, toys) and (b) describe the SI relevant to that category (e.g., “loves Legos”). Transcripts of the caregivers’ SI descriptions were coded into categories that captured (a) positive and negative perceptions of the SI, (b) SI functionality (i.e., whether it was adaptive or maladaptive), (c) SI modalities, and (d) perceptions of SI modalities. Statements pertaining to positive and negative SIs were identified (N = 431); 57.41% of the responses were positive (e.g., “he is a savant”) and 42.59% were negative (e.g., “she is addicted”). The most positively viewed SIs were math, reading and writing, and animals (90%, 85.71%, and 83.33% positive, respectively), and the most negatively viewed SIs were object attachment, TV, and collecting (87.50%, 81.25%, and 80% negative, respectively). Statements pertaining to adaptive and maladaptive SIs were identified (N = 156); 58.33% of the responses were adaptive (e.g., “wants to be an architect”) and 41.67% were maladaptive (e.g., “will have a meltdown if he can’t watch YouTube”). SIs with the highest proportion of adaptive statements were reading and writing (93.33%) and computers (90%); object attachment (93.33%) and TV (91.67%) had the highest proportion of negative statements. Statements pertaining to how youths engage in SIs (N = 552) yielded six modalities: information seeking (27.54%), perseveration (20.47%), attachment (15.94%), memorization (12.86%), repetition (12.50%), and sensory seeking (10.69%). The most positively viewed modalities were memorization and information seeking (85.71% and 77.27% positive, respectively). Perseveration and attachment represented the most negatively viewed modalities (83.33% and 80% negative, respectively). 

Results suggest that caregivers of autistic youths identify positive, negative, and functional attributes to their youths’ SIs. SIs that were academic and similar to “typical” interests were viewed as more positive and more adaptive by caregivers, whereas SIs involving perseveration (e.g., watching TV shows repetitively) and attachment to objects (e.g., in ability to separate from an object) were viewed negatively and as maladaptive. These findings suggest considerable nuance in how specific SIs are viewed, which can inform assessment of SIs for this clinical population. 

Note: Coding is ongoing. Results are based on a subset of a larger sample (N =1,992), which will be coded by July 2022.