Which Factors Influence Teacher Report of Adaptive Functioning in Autistic Children?
Heather L Moore, Leanne Rogan, Lauren J Taylor and 4 others
PMID 33710469WHAT IT FOUND
Teachers reported very low adaptive functioning in autistic children.
Scores dropped as age and parent-reported autism severity increased. Higher nonverbal ability and expressive language predicted better scores. Direct autism assessment did not predict adaptive functioning, except for motor skills.
Key findings
01Teacher-reported adaptive functioning scores were significantly lower than age expectations, with 78% of children scoring more than 2 standard deviations below the norm.
02Child age, parent-reported autism severity, and teacher-reported behaviour problems predicted lower adaptive functioning, while higher nonverbal ability and expressive language predicted better adaptive functioning.
03Direct assessment of autism severity (ADOS-2) did not predict overall adaptive functioning, but was positively associated with motor skills.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study is cross-sectional, so it cannot determine if these relationships change over time. Information about the teachers' background, experience, and training was not collected, so differences in how they interpreted the questionnaire items cannot be ruled out. The study did not compare teacher reports directly with parent reports to see if the factors influencing them were the same. Twelve children were excluded from the analysis because they were too young for the normative data, and some data were missing for other measures.
Declared interests
The study was funded by the National Institute for Health Research and the Medical Research Council. No other conflicts of interest were declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that direct assessment of autism severity (ADOS-2) predicts a child's everyday adaptive skills as reported by teachers. The study found no relationship between ADOS-2 scores and overall adaptive functioning, suggesting that teacher reports may be influenced more by language, behaviour, and parent-reported severity than by clinical observation of core autism traits.