Objectives: Two studies were conducted to better understand how children with intellectual disabilities (ID) empathize with the feelings of others during social interactions. The first study tested hypotheses of developmental delay or difference regarding empathy in 79 children with ID by comparing them with typically developing (TD) children,…

This study compared sexual orientation and romantic relationship experience in a large sample of adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) (n = 675) and general population peers (n = 8064). Gender identity was explored in the ASD group in relation to assigned gender at birth. Compared to general population peers, more people with…

Mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder (n = 70) completed online measures of global constructs (i.e., stable individual characteristics measured at time 1), which included resilience, depressive symptoms, and family functioning, followed by 14 daily questionnaires assessing relationship quality and affect on a given day. The global…

The broader autism phenotype (BAP) is a set of subclinical traits qualitatively similar to those observed in autism spectrum disorders. The current study sought to elucidate the association between self- and informant-reports of the BAP and friendships, in a non-clinical sample of college student dyads. Self-informant agreement of the BAP and…

This study describes the characteristics of children with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) receiving treatment in community mental health settings. Data from a national community mental health initiative was used to identify children who had received a primary diagnosis of ASD. These children were compared with children with other diagnoses on…