An exploration of sensory processing patterns and their association with demographic factors in healthy adults

Abstract

Purpose Previous research has provided limited evidence on whether and how demographic factors associate with sensory processing patterns (SPP) in adults. This paper aims to examine relationships between SPPs and sociodemographic factors of age, sex, education and ethnicity in healthy adults. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional study design was used. A total of 71 adult participants was recruited from the community, using convenience sampling. Each participant completed the Adolescent/Adult Sensory Profile (AASP) and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales – short version (DASS-21). Demographic information on age, sex, education and ethnicity was collected. Results were analysed using descriptive statistics and multivariate analyses of covariance (MANCOVA). Findings SPPs, as measured by the AASP, were significantly correlated to demographic factors of age and education after controlling for emotional distress using the DASS-21. A statistically significant multivariate effect was found across the four dependent variables (low registration, seeking, sensitivity and avoiding) for the age category, F = 6.922, p = 0.009, ηp2 = 0.145, in the presence of a covariate DASS. The education category showed significance only in the seeking domain (p = 0.008, ηp2 = 0.10) after controlling for DASS. There was no significant correlation between SPPs and gender or ethnicity. Results also indicated that mean scores of participants in this study were “similar to most people” as standardised in the AASP. Research limitations/implications This was a cross-sectional study with limitations including that the study used a relatively small sample and was based on self-reported healthy participants. Practical implications SPPs may correlate with healthy adults’ age and to a lesser extent education. This suggests that it might be helpful to consider such demographic factors when interpreting SPPs in clinical populations, although further research in larger samples is needed to reach firmer conclusions about possible implications of demographic variables. Originality/value The findings in this paper add to the growing evidence that suggest that SPPs vary with sociodemographic factors.

The impact of atypical sensory processing on adaptive functioning within and beyond autism: The role of familial factors

“…This inverse association pattern between sensation seeking and adaptive functioning in individuals diagnosed with ASD compared to those without ASD diagnosis indicates that while sensation seeking behaviors might interfere with adaptive functioning in individuals with ASD, this is not the case for individuals without the condition. Previous research rather suggests that sensation seeking in TD individuals predicts higher functioning, such as higher education and more positive affect (Ben-Avi et al, 2012;Engel-Yeger, & Dunn, 2011;Machingura et al, 2019). Although sensation seeking behaviors might be used by individuals with ASD to regulate under-stimulation and to re-inforce sensory stimuli (Cunningham & Schreibman, 2008;Hebert, 2015), they might also lead to socially unacceptable behaviors.…”

“…Sensation avoiding, in particular, is negatively associated with self-care skills such as eating and getting dressed in children with ASD (Jasmin et al, 2009). Interestingly, sensation seeking behaviors, which are associated with positive mood, higher education, and reduced depressive symptoms in TD individuals (Ben-Avi et al, 2012;Engel-Yeger, & Dunn, 2011;Machingura et al, 2019), are in contrast linked to a broad range of behavioral problems, including difficulties in adjusting one's behavior according to social rules (Baker et al, 2008) and academic underachievement in children with ASD diagnosis (Ashburner et al, 2008).…”

Effectiveness of sensory modulation for people with schizophrenia: A multisite quantitative prospective cohort study

“…Findings of this study suggest that participants with schizophrenia have a higher neurological threshold than most people and may require more intense stimuli than most people for them to be able to register it. Similarly, previous studies also found that participants with schizophrenia had higher scores than participants without schizophrenia participants Brown et al, 2020;Machingura et al, 2019). This implies that they are less likely to take measures to avoid sensory stimuli that they found to be unpleasant to them.…”

“…This study considered whether people with schizophrenia's sensory profiles were atypical when compared with the general population (Machingura et al, 2019). In this study, statistically significant differences in Low Registration and Sensation Avoiding were found between participants who had schizophrenia and healthy participants we had recruited in an earlier study.…”

“…Differences in proportions between the groups were tested using chi‐square test or Fisher's exact test. Sensory processing patterns on the four domains of the A/ASP in the current participants were compared with those of adults without schizophrenia from the same geographic area in Queensland, Australia (Machingura et al, 2019), using independent t ‐tests to determine if our study sample differed with the general population.…”