Suicide has been identified as a leading cause of premature death in autistic populations. Elevated autistic traits have also been associated with higher rates of self-harm, suicidal ideation, and suicidal self-harm in the general population, but this has yet to be examined in older age. Using baseline cross-sectional data from the PROTECT study,…

Despite increasing attention on suicidality in autistic people, we know little about suicidal presentations when autistic individuals present to hospital emergency departments (ED). We conducted an exploratory retrospective chart review of suicidal thoughts and behaviours (STB) of autistic adults who presented to a psychiatric ED. The analysis…

Self-harm and suicidal behaviors are prevalent among autistic adults without intellectual disability (ID). Emotion dysregulation (ED), the difficulty in modulating emotions, has been identified as an important risk factor. Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) has been proved effective to treat ED in disorders other than autism spectrum disorder. Our…

Self-harm is purportedly common in autistic individuals, but under-researched, particularly in younger samples and those "without" intellectual disability. This study aimed to describe prevalence, profile and correlates of self-harm in autistic individuals without impairments in adaptive functioning. Parents of autistic participants (n =…

Suicidality is significantly more common in autistic adults than the general population, yet the factors that increase risk for suicidality among autistic adults remain largely unknown. We identified characteristics associated with suicidal ideation and suicide attempts/self-inflicted injury in a U.S. national sample of Medicare-enrolled autistic…

Autistic individuals experience elevated risk for suicide ideation, attempts, and deaths. Little is known about how clinicians assess risk or intervene with suicidal autistic individuals. We surveyed 121 clinicians about use of suicide prevention practices with autistic and non-autistic clients. Clinicians reported greater self-efficacy in…

Self-injury is common in autism spectrum disorder (ASD); however few studies have investigated correlates of self-injury or the putative associations with self-restraint. Questionnaire data on self-injury, self-restraint, health conditions, overactivity/impulsivity and repetitive/restricted behavior were collected on 208 children and 216 adults…

Evidence-based treatment must begin with the systematic and comprehensive identification of an individual's complete clinical picture. Therefore, screening individuals with intellectual disability (ID) for comorbid disorders is imperative. Because of the frequent overlap between autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and ID, the current study explored the…

Individuals with intellectual disability (ID) show high rates of challenging behavior (CB). The aim of this retrospective study was to assess the factors underlying CB in an adult, clinical ID sample (n = 203). Low levels of emotional development (ED), as measured by the "Scheme of Appraisal of ED," predicted overall CB, specifically…

Although hyperphagia and compulsivity in Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) are well described, recreation and adaptive skills are relatively unexplored. Parents of 123 participants with PWS (4--48 years) completed measures of their child's adaptive, recreation, and problem behaviors. Offspring received cognitive testing. Watching TV was the most…

The psychometric characteristics of the IBR Modified Overt Aggression Scale were studied in over 2,000 people with Intellectual Disability (ID). Reliability ranged from good to excellent. Aggression toward others and objects was highest in the youngest adults, in those in the moderate to severe range of ID, and in those with an autism spectrum…

Decision-making is an important function that can be quantified using a two-choice prediction task. Individuals with Autistic Disorder (AD) often show highly restricted and repetitive behavior that may interfere with adaptive decision-making. We assessed whether AD adults showed repetitive behavior on the choice task that was unaffected by…