Anxiety emotional reactivity social camouflaging and burnout mediate the relationship between autistic traits and mental well-being in medical students

Mental health problems among medical students represent a major global concern. This study examined the statistical mediating associations of anxiety, emotional reactivity, social camouflaging, and burnout in the relationship between autistic traits and mental well-being among medical students. The study was conducted with a sample of 695 medical students from the Faculty of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, and Vocational School of Health Services. The sample consisted of 318 females (45.8%) and 377 males (54.2%). The analyses revealed that anxiety and emotional reactivity were significantly associated with social camouflaging behaviors in the final model. The initially specified direct path from autistic traits to social camouflaging was found to be non-significant and was therefore removed from the final structural model. Furthermore, burnout statistically mediated the association between social camouflaging behaviors and mental well-being. The findings highlight the role of autistic traits in relation to mental well-being among medical students through a network of statistically associated psychological processes. Designing interventions targeting emotional reactivity, anxiety, and social camouflaging behaviors may be beneficial for supporting sustainable mental well-being in this population.