University of Twente Student Theses
Examining the Effects of Prior Procedural Information on Measures of Anxiety in Autistic Individuals in the Investigative Interview
Saciri, Yasmin (2024) Examining the Effects of Prior Procedural Information on Measures of Anxiety in Autistic Individuals in the Investigative Interview.
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| Abstract: | Investigative interviewing is crucial for gaining information from victims, witnesses and suspects. However, this technique has been constructed with neurotypical people in mind. The open-ended questioning style applied in these processes might not be helpful to people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). ASD is a neurological and developmental disorder that affects communication, behaviour and learning. People with ASD have higher levels of anxiety in day-to-day life, due to their challenges with sensory stimuli, the cognitive load and their need for routine (Van Steensel et al., 2014). Therefore, autistics might have different needs when it comes to an investigative interview. This research explores how providing prior procedural information before the investigative interview could decrease the autistic participants’ anxiety levels during the investigative interview. A between-subject design with two conditions (receiving procedural information versus not receiving procedural information) was used. 42 participants in total conducted the interviews, which were followed by a questionnaire measuring somatic anxiety. 21 participants received prior procedural information, while the other 21 participants received no such information. There was a significant difference in anxiety levels before the mock interview and after the mock interview, with the anxiety levels of autistic participants having increased after the mock interview, both in the procedural information group and the no procedural information group. Results however revealed that there was no significant difference in those who received prior procedural information and those who did not. These findings show that the provided procedural information did not effectively decrease anxiety in autistic individuals. However, there is a difference in anxiety levels in general after the mock interview between the no procedural autistic group and the procedural information autistic group, which shows that there is a tendency towards a decrease for anxiety. Future research should explore this tendency by enhancing the prior procedural information to be more tailored to autistic individuals to better support them in the investigative interview. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Bachelor) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Subject: | 70 social sciences in general, 77 psychology |
| Programme: | Psychology BSc (56604) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/100045 |
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