Brief Report: Behavior Disorders and Social Skills in Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Does IQ Matter?
Bruce L Baker, Jan Blacher
PMID 30888552WHAT IT FOUND
Mothers and teachers found no clear difference between adolescents with autism and intellectual disability and those with autism and higher IQ in behavior problems, social skills, or parent well-being.
Key findings
01Across 39 mother and teacher comparisons, there was no clear rated difference between adolescents with autism and intellectual disability and those with autism and higher IQ.
02Compared with typical development, adolescents with autism were rated with more behavior problems and lower social skills, whether or not they had intellectual disability.
03On individual behavior items, the autism groups differed on only one item: self-consciousness or easy embarrassment was higher in the autism group with typical IQ.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The main autism comparison had smaller groups and was underpowered, so a small real difference could have been missed. Many of the outcomes were related, so they do not show separate effects. The analysis was at one age, 13 years, so it may not apply to younger or older adolescents. The study relied on parent and teacher reports for the main outcomes. Many autism participants were recruited through schools and a private nonprofit organization of schools for autism, which may not represent all settings.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflict of interest. Families were paid $75 and teachers $25 for participation.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the lack of difference as proof that intellectual disability never worsens behavior or social skills in autism. The main comparison was underpowered, and many measures overlapped.