The purpose of this study was to examine the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of the Psycho-educational Profile-Revised (PEP-R). The Chinese PEP-R (CPEP-R) was administered to 63 preschool children with symptoms of autistic disorder recruited from special child-care centers in Hong Kong. Results showed that the scales of the CPEP-R…

Teacher ratings on the Aberrant Behavior Checklist were collected on 666 students with mental retardation attending special classes. Classroom placement and age had significant effects on subscale scores, whereas sex failed to affect ratings. The study concludes that the original scoring method, developed for individuals in residential facilities,…

Autism Behavior Checklists were completed for 52 autistic individuals (ages 2-31) and 62 nonautistic individuals, and data were analyzed using signal detection methodology. A single item (looks "through" people) combined with one of five other items discriminated as well as the sum scores, and further combinations did not improve…

This article evaluates the scientific basis (primarily gained through uncontrolled, descriptive studies) of various sensory and motor interventions for children with autism and concludes that most categories of interventions, including sensory integration, sensory stimulation approaches, auditory integration training, and prism lenses, have shown…

This study, involving 24 children or adolescents with pervasive developmental disorders, assessed 3 autism scales: Autism Behavior Checklist, Real Life Rating Scale, and Childhood Autism Rating Scale. The study analyzed interrater reliability, correlations between pairs of the three scales, diagnostic classification cutoff scores, and…

The Autism Behavior Checklist was completed for 67 autistic and 56 mentally retarded and learning-disabled children (ages 6-15). The checklist was effective in classifying children when using either the full scale or only the more highly weighted items. Results did not support a single unidimensional scale or subdividing the checklist into five…

This study investigated the validity of using facilitated communication with individuals with autism (n=6) or profound cognitive impairments (n=6) on the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised (PPVT-R) when facilitators were screened from visual and auditory stimuli. Results do not validate the use of facilitated communication with the PPVT-R or…

The agreement between the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI- R) and the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) was investigated in the diagnostic assessment of 54 children (ages 22-114 months) referred for possible autism. The observed agreement between the two systems was 66.7%. The CARS identified more cases of autism than the ADI-R.…

This study of an adolescent with multiple disabilities, including moderate mental retardation, who was reported to engage in validated facilitated communication (FC) found he did not engage in validated FC; performance was equivalent whether food or nonfood reinforcers were used; and the Picture Exchange Communication System was a valid and…

Potential individual variations in the effectiveness of facilitated communication (FC) were examined with 20 students with autism and related disorders. Use of multiple methods (including auditory or visual input, simple point responses, and typing) provided no clear support for validity of FC over students' independent communication. Increased…

Nineteen adults with developmental disabilities, judged competent in facilitated communication, participated in a validation study using an information passing design requiring short-term recall of stimulus cards with shapes, colors, and numbers. Results failed to validate facilitated communication for the group as a whole, any individual…

The Nisonger Child Behavior Rating Form (NCBRF) is a behavior rating scale designed for children and adolescents with mental retardation. The purpose of this study was to explore the psychometric properties of the NCBRF in a sample of 330 children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Parent and teacher ratings were independently…