Utility of the Modified Anxiety Dimensional Observation Scale in Autistic Preschoolers with Varying Intellectual Functioning.

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Title: Utility of the Modified Anxiety Dimensional Observation Scale in Autistic Preschoolers with Varying Intellectual Functioning.
Authors: Hogan, Abigail L. (AUTHOR), Smith, Kayla (AUTHOR), Mian, Nicholas D. (AUTHOR), Black, Conner (AUTHOR), Hunt, Erin (AUTHOR), Knott, Chandler (AUTHOR), Moser, Carly (AUTHOR), Smith, Jenna (AUTHOR), Caravella, Kelly E. (AUTHOR), Hills, Kimberly (AUTHOR), Fairchild, Amanda (AUTHOR), Carter, Alice S. (AUTHOR), Roberts, Jane (AUTHOR)
Source: Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology. Jan/Feb2026, Vol. 55 Issue 1, p106-120. 15p.
Subjects: Autism spectrum disorders, Anxiety, Behavioral assessment, Preschool children, Scientific observation, Intellectual disabilities, Psychometrics
Abstract: Objective: Co-occurring anxiety affects 40–80% of autistic individuals; however, little is understood about how anxiety manifests in young autistic children, especially those with intellectual disability (ID), partly due to the paucity of measures designed to assess anxiety symptoms in this population. The present study examined the utility of the Modified Anxiety Dimensional Observation Scale (M-Anx-DOS), an observational measure of anxiety-related behaviors, in preschool-aged autistic children with and without ID. Method: This study included 48 autistic children (Mean age = 43.96 months; 81.3% with ID) and 30 non-autistic (NA) controls (Mean age = 43.66 months). Anxiety-related behaviors were measured during the M-Anx-DOS. Parent-reported anxiety symptoms were assessed via the Preschool Anxiety Scale-Revised (PAS-R). Results: Groups exhibited comparable scores on both the M-Anx-DOS and PAS-R. Within the autism group, a subset of M-Anx-DOS scores were related to age, autistic features, or IQ. The M-Anx-DOS exhibited excellent inter-rater reliability and acceptable internal consistency. Convergent validity was promising, with specific M-Anx-DOS scores correlated with parent-reported social, separation, and overall anxiety symptoms. M-Anx-DOS scores were not correlated with parent-reported ADHD or externalizing symptoms, suggesting strong discriminant validity. Conclusions: This study provides preliminary evidence of the reliability and validity of the M-Anx-DOS. These findings are promising given the importance of observational measurement of anxiety and lack of existing measures for this critical developmental period. Given the sample size and the complexity of identifying prodromal signs of anxiety in young autistic preschoolers with ID, future longitudinal work is essential to replicate and extend this work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Data: Utility of the Modified Anxiety Dimensional Observation Scale in Autistic Preschoolers with Varying Intellectual Functioning.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Hogan%2C+Abigail+L%2E%22">Hogan, Abigail L.</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Smith%2C+Kayla%22">Smith, Kayla</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Mian%2C+Nicholas+D%2E%22">Mian, Nicholas D.</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Black%2C+Conner%22">Black, Conner</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Hunt%2C+Erin%22">Hunt, Erin</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Knott%2C+Chandler%22">Knott, Chandler</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Moser%2C+Carly%22">Moser, Carly</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Smith%2C+Jenna%22">Smith, Jenna</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Caravella%2C+Kelly+E%2E%22">Caravella, Kelly E.</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Hills%2C+Kimberly%22">Hills, Kimberly</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Fairchild%2C+Amanda%22">Fairchild, Amanda</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Carter%2C+Alice+S%2E%22">Carter, Alice S.</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Roberts%2C+Jane%22">Roberts, Jane</searchLink> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+Clinical+Child+%26+Adolescent+Psychology%22">Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology</searchLink>. Jan/Feb2026, Vol. 55 Issue 1, p106-120. 15p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Autism+spectrum+disorders%22">Autism spectrum disorders</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Anxiety%22">Anxiety</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Behavioral+assessment%22">Behavioral assessment</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Preschool+children%22">Preschool children</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Scientific+observation%22">Scientific observation</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Intellectual+disabilities%22">Intellectual disabilities</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Psychometrics%22">Psychometrics</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Objective: Co-occurring anxiety affects 40–80% of autistic individuals; however, little is understood about how anxiety manifests in young autistic children, especially those with intellectual disability (ID), partly due to the paucity of measures designed to assess anxiety symptoms in this population. The present study examined the utility of the Modified Anxiety Dimensional Observation Scale (M-Anx-DOS), an observational measure of anxiety-related behaviors, in preschool-aged autistic children with and without ID. Method: This study included 48 autistic children (Mean age = 43.96 months; 81.3% with ID) and 30 non-autistic (NA) controls (Mean age = 43.66 months). Anxiety-related behaviors were measured during the M-Anx-DOS. Parent-reported anxiety symptoms were assessed via the Preschool Anxiety Scale-Revised (PAS-R). Results: Groups exhibited comparable scores on both the M-Anx-DOS and PAS-R. Within the autism group, a subset of M-Anx-DOS scores were related to age, autistic features, or IQ. The M-Anx-DOS exhibited excellent inter-rater reliability and acceptable internal consistency. Convergent validity was promising, with specific M-Anx-DOS scores correlated with parent-reported social, separation, and overall anxiety symptoms. M-Anx-DOS scores were not correlated with parent-reported ADHD or externalizing symptoms, suggesting strong discriminant validity. Conclusions: This study provides preliminary evidence of the reliability and validity of the M-Anx-DOS. These findings are promising given the importance of observational measurement of anxiety and lack of existing measures for this critical developmental period. Given the sample size and the complexity of identifying prodromal signs of anxiety in young autistic preschoolers with ID, future longitudinal work is essential to replicate and extend this work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1080/15374416.2025.2454647
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 15
        StartPage: 106
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Autism spectrum disorders
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Anxiety
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Behavioral assessment
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Preschool children
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Scientific observation
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      – SubjectFull: Intellectual disabilities
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      – SubjectFull: Psychometrics
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      – TitleFull: Utility of the Modified Anxiety Dimensional Observation Scale in Autistic Preschoolers with Varying Intellectual Functioning.
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              Text: Jan/Feb2026
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              Y: 2026
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