We examined relationships between measures of adaptive behavior, cognitive ability, and autism symptom severity in 1458 preschool-aged children with autism from the Study to Explore Early Development. While publications commonly describe autistic children as "low-" or "high-functioning" based on cognitive ability, relying…

Studies have shown that there are differences between the presentations of males and females diagnosed with autism. There remains a developing understanding about how the presentation of autism differs between boys (hereafter referred to as 'assigned males at birth') and girls (assigned females at birth). This study sought to investigate the…

The commonly used Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (VABS-3) divides adaptive behavior into three domains comprising three subdomains. The validity of this three-factor structure has not been explored in autistic samples, which are often heterogeneous with respect to language and IQ. Furthermore, although there are two comparable forms,…

Background & aims: Although the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) has been demonstrated to be an effective intervention to teach people diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder a functional communication system, the research indicates variability in PECS outcomes across people and studies. Therefore, the purpose of the current study…

Multimorbidity, defined as having two or more chronic health conditions, is associated with elevated polypharmacy and mortality. Autism spectrum disorder is a whole-body chronic health condition in which comorbidities -- in particular co-occurring intellectual disability -- contribute to high clinical heterogeneity, polypharmacy and premature…

Research regarding autistic children's sibling relationship quality is mixed, although some literature suggests poorer quality compared to children with other disabilities or who are neurotypical. Little is known about how the clinical characteristics of autistic children relate to parent perceptions of sibling relationship quality. We drew data…

Prior eye-tracking studies involving autistic individuals have focused on total looking time or proportion of looking time to key regions of interest. These studies have not examined another important feature, the ability to sustain attention to stimuli. In particular, the ability to sustain attention to a dynamic social stimulus might reflect…

Background: The Nisonger Child Behavior Rating Form (NCBRF) allows for the assessment of frequency and severity of challenging behaviours of individuals with ID with one combined rating. However, frequency and severity rating of challenging behaviours may be in disagreement. Therefore, the efficacy of frequency and severity independent ratings for…

Background: In addition to symptoms of neurodevelopmental disorders, functional impairment is crucial to the determination of clinical significance. The aim of this study was to examine partial validity and usefulness of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire's (SDQ) impact supplement (SDQ impact) in measuring functional impairment in…

Purpose: The aim of this study was to situate developmental language disorder (DLD) within the impairment and disability framework of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF); describe the functional strengths and weaknesses of a cohort of first-grade children with DLD and their peers; and explore the ways that…

Elevated parenting stress among parents of children with autism spectrum disorder is well-documented; however, there is limited information about variability in parenting stress and relationships with parent ratings of child functioning. The aim of this study was to explore profiles of parenting stress among 100 parents of young children with…

Controlled studies examining canine therapy in autism spectrum disorder are scarce. This study examined the effectiveness of a "Dog Training Intervention" on adaptive skills, autism severity, and anxiety using a controlled crossover design. Seventy-three participants diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (M[subscript age] = 4:10 ± 1:0)…

Introduction: The goal of this study was to examine socialization in adults with intellectual disability in relation to gender, level of intellectual disability, mental illness, and setting type. Methods: The sample consisted of 120 participants (60 males and 60 females), aged between 20 and 56 years, divided into two groups: 1. participants with…

Temperament is a construct that is relatively stable over time but varies between individuals. Research suggests that children with autism spectrum disorder have a 'reactive' temperament profile when compared to peers with or without disabilities. However, our understanding of how temperament varies within children with autism and how it relates…

Autism spectrum disorder symptom emergence is heterogeneous, yet literature comparing young children diagnosed early versus later is relatively scant. Toddlers diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder between 12 and 18 months (n = 20), 19 and 24 months (n = 65), or 25 and 41 months (n = 27) were compared on demographics, developmental functioning,…