Abstract
The symptoms of auditory hypersensitivity exhibited by individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may be related to impaired selective attention. Additionally, mindfulness training has been suggested to be effective in improving selective attention. Therefore, this study examined the effects of mindfulness training on individuals with ASD and the symptoms of auditory hypersensitivity. The participants included 30 male and female adults with a diagnosis of or a tendency toward ASD and a tendency toward auditory hypersensitivity. The intervention results showed a significant improvement in mindfulness skills and a significant decrease in the tendency toward auditory hypersensitivity for those in the intervention group. However, there was no significant change in selective attention function scores. Additional analysis revealed that learning to accept unpleasant feelings associated with unpleasant sounds and reducing anticipatory anxiety about unpleasant sounds can help treat the symptoms of auditory hypersensitivity effectively.
