“I think; therefore I am”: Cognitive Distortions and Loneliness in Adolescents with Neurodevelopmental Disorders

The proposed 3-year project will advance and apply frontiers of knowledge in meaningful ways. Using mixed-methods involving semi-structured interviews and multi-level modelling we will: (i) Identify the specific situations and scenarios in which adolescents with NDDs experience peer friendship difficulties and loneliness in their everyday interactions. (ii) Determine whether peer friendship difficulties and loneliness in specific situations and scenarios vary according to NDD, sex and rural/metropolitan location. (iii) Gauge how adolescents with NDDs interpret ambiguity within their peer interactions. And (iv) Modify, extend and evaluate our existing 3-D animated approach for adolescents with NDDs.