The role of bullying victimization in the pathway between autistic traits and psychotic experiences in adolescence: Data from the Tokyo Teen Cohort study.

This study looked at teenagers in Tokyo and found that young people with more autism traits are more likely to experience unusual thoughts or perceptions (called psychotic experiences). The research showed that being bullied helps explain this connection - teens with autism traits get bullied more often, and bullying increases the risk of these unusual experiences. This suggests that preventing bullying could help protect autistic young people's mental health.

This longitudinal study examined whether bullying victimization explains the relationship between autistic traits and psychotic experiences in adolescence. Using data from the Tokyo Teen Cohort study of general population adolescents aged 10-14, researchers found a significant indirect effect where bullying victimization mediated the association between autistic traits and psychotic experiences. The study controlled for known confounding variables and demonstrated that autistic traits increase risk of psychotic experiences partially through increased exposure to bullying. The findings suggest that preventing bullying victimization could reduce psychosis risk among adolescents with high levels of autistic traits.

Results suggest that bullying prevention programs could be an important intervention for reducing psychosis risk in autistic adolescents. Clinicians should screen for bullying experiences when assessing mental health in autistic youth and consider both direct support for psychotic symptoms and environmental modifications to reduce bullying exposure.

Sample size not reported in the abstract. Study limited to Japanese adolescent population, which may limit generalizability to other cultural contexts. The abstract does not specify the measurement tools used for assessing autistic traits, bullying, or psychotic experiences.

Autistic traits are associated with psychotic experiences in adolescence; however, the mechanisms underlying this relationship are not well understood. Prior research indicates that bullying victimization increases the risk of psychotic experiences in general adolescent populations, and autistic youth are at higher risk of being bullied than their non-autistic peers. Using longitudinal data from general population adolescents aged 10-14 in the Tokyo Teen Cohort study, we tested the hypothesis that bullying is responsible for the association between autistic traits and psychotic experiences in adolescence. We identified an indirect effect (estimate = 0.033 [95% CIs: 0.014-0.057], p < 0.001) between autistic traits and psychotic experiences via bullying victimization, even after controlling for known confounders.

Prevention of bullying victimization may be one avenue for reducing risk of psychosis among adolescents with high levels of autistic traits.