The Autism-Spectrum Quotient is a self-report scale, used to assess autistic traits. It was tested cross-culturally, and a short version was created to clinically refer adults for an autism assessment. This study aimed to examine the properties of the Hebrew version of the Autism-Spectrum Quotient and to create a short version suitable for…

The sex bias in autism diagnosis suggests the involvement of sex-specific endocrine mechanisms during prenatal development, but these hormones affect health throughout life. Therefore, the current study examined the association of autism and autistic traits with conditions and symptoms related to the sex-steroid system in adult women. In total,…

Social camouflaging describes the use of strategies to compensate for and mask autistic characteristics during social interactions. A newly developed self-reported measure of camouflaging (Camouflaging Autistic Traits Questionnaire) was used in an online survey to measure gender differences in autistic (n = 306) and non-autistic adults (n = 472)…

This study explored whether the Interpersonal Theory of suicide informs our understanding of high rates of suicidality in autistic adults. Autistic and non-autistic adults (n = 695, mean age 41.7 years, 58% female) completed an online survey of self-reported thwarted belonging, perceived burden, autistic traits, suicidal capability, trauma, and…

Pregnancy may pose a number of physical and healthcare-related challenges for autistic people, who experience differences in sensory processing and can face barriers to accessing healthcare. However, little research has explored autistic pregnancy experiences. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 24 autistic and 21 non-autistic women…

The present study aimed to compare prevalence of autistic traits measured by the self-reported autism spectrum quotient-short (AQ-short) in a transgender clinical population (n = 656) matched by age and sex assigned at birth to a cisgender community sample. Results showed that transgender and cisgender people reported similar levels of possible…

This study explored demographic and psychological predictors of alcohol use and misuse in a high-functioning, community sample of 237 autistic adults aged 18-75 (mean = 41.92 and standard deviation = 13.3) recruited in the United Kingdom. An online survey measured demographic information, autistic traits, depression, generalised anxiety, social…

There currently exist no self-report measures of social camouflaging behaviours (strategies used to compensate for or mask autistic characteristics during social interactions). The Camouflaging Autistic Traits Questionnaire (CAT-Q) was developed from autistic adults' experiences of camouflaging, and was administered online to 354 autistic and 478…

Previous research shows that autistic people have high levels of co-occurring mental health conditions. Yet, a number of case reports have revealed that mental health conditions are often misdiagnosed in autistic individuals. A total of 420 adults who identified as autistic, possibly autistic or non-autistic completed an online survey consisting…

Research to date in mainland China has mainly focused on children with autistic disorder rather than Autism Spectrum Conditions and the diagnosis largely depended on clinical judgment without the use of diagnostic instruments. Whether children who have been diagnosed in China before meet the diagnostic criteria of Autism Spectrum Conditions is not…

Sex differences in social and communication behaviours related to autism spectrum conditions (ASC) have been investigated mainly in Western populations. Little research has been done in Chinese populations. This study explored sex differences related to ASC characteristics by examining differences in item responses and score distributions in…

Rightward cerebral lateralization has been suggested to be involved in the neuropathology of autism spectrum conditions. We investigated functional and neuroanatomical asymmetry, in terms of handedness and corpus callosum measurements in male adolescents with autism, their unaffected siblings and controls, and their associations with executive…

The "extreme male brain" theory suggests females with Autism Spectrum Conditions are hyper-masculinized in certain aspects of behavior. We predicted that females with Gender Identity Disorder (who are masculinized) would have elevated Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) scores. AQ scores from five groups were compared: (1) n = 61 transmen…

Objective: Frontline health professionals need a "red flag" tool to aid their decision making about whether to make a referral for a full diagnostic assessment for an autism spectrum condition (ASC) in children and adults. The aim was to identify 10 items on the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) (Adult, Adolescent, and Child versions) and on…

The Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) has been used to define the "broader" (BAP), "medium" (MAP) and "narrow" autism phenotypes (NAP). We used a new Italian version of the AQ to test if difference on AQ scores and the distribution of BAP, MAP and NAP in autism parents (n = 245) versus control parents (n = 300) were…