title: Relationships among Sensory Responsiveness, Anxiety, and Ritual Behaviors in Children with and without Atypical Sensory Responsiveness.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore relationships between sensory responsiveness, anxiety, and ritual behaviors in boys with typical and atypical sensory responsiveness.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-eight boys, ages 5-9 participated in the study (28 boys with atypical sensory responsiveness and 20 controls). Atypical sensory responsiveness was defined as a score of ≤154 on the Short Sensory Profile. Parents completed the Sensory Profile, the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders, and the Childhood Routines Inventory.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Children with atypical sensory responsiveness had significantly higher levels of anxiety and a higher frequency of ritual behaviors than controls. Atypical sensory responsiveness was significantly related to both anxiety and ritual behaviors, with anxiety mediating the relationship between sensory modulation and ritual behaviors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings elucidate the potential consequences of atypical sensory responsiveness and could support the notion that ritual behaviors develop as a coping mechanism in response to anxiety stemming from primary difficulty in modulating sensory input.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Occupational Therapy, School of Health Professions, Sackler Faculty of Medicine , Tel Aviv University , Tel Aviv , Israel.
authors.forename: Orit
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Bart
authors.affiliation: a Department of Occupational Therapy, School of Health Professions, Sackler Faculty of Medicine , Tel Aviv University , Tel Aviv , Israel.
authors.forename: Tami
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bar-Shalita
authors.affiliation: a Department of Occupational Therapy, School of Health Professions, Sackler Faculty of Medicine , Tel Aviv University , Tel Aviv , Israel.
authors.forename: Hanin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mansour
authors.affiliation: b School of Psychological Sciences , Tel Aviv University , Tel Aviv , Israel.
authors.forename: Reuven
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dar
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D001007:Anxiety / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002562:Ceremonial Behavior; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012678:Sensation Disorders / Q000523:psychology*
keywords: Anxiety; rituals; sensory modulation