The social responsiveness scale in relation to DSM IV and DSM5 ASD in Korean children.

The study did not measure test-retest stability or agreement between different raters, so it cannot show whether the same child would score similarly over time or when rated by different adults. The number of children with social communication disorder was very small, so findings about that diagnosis are limited. The general school sample had a low response rate, which could bias norm scores, although a later independent sample had a similar mean of 31 and standard deviation of 15. The authors said appropriate cutoff points still need development and testing before the questionnaire is recommended as a screener in clinical practice or research. In the clinical sample, social communication disorder diagnoses were based on clinical diagnosis rather than structured interviews, which may affect specificity findings. Gender effects in the epidemiological autism sample may have been missed because the sample had uneven gender distribution and limited statistical power. The general sample came from schools in one city with somewhat higher educational and socioeconomic status than the general Korean population.

One author, Dr. Constantino, receives royalties from Western Psychological Services for commercial distribution of the Social Responsiveness Scale.

Do not treat a high questionnaire score as proof that a child has autism or social communication disorder. The study says score thresholds still need testing, and the questionnaire did not clearly separate social communication disorder from other psychiatric conditions.