Behavior analysts frequently use the Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement Program (VB-MAPP) to assess the language and social skills of children with autism in everyday practice and in research. Despite the widespread use of the VB-MAPP, its psychometric characteristics have not been extensively investigated. To provide information…

Anxiety symptomatology is frequently reported in autistic children, and the prevalence of anxiety disorder is estimated at around 40%. However, most studies have focused upon children of age 8 years or above, so little is known about early signs of anxiety in younger children with autism. This study sought to describe anxiety-related…

Nonverbal IQ (NVIQ) was examined in 84 individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) followed from age 2 to 19. Most adults who scored in the range of intellectual disability also received scores below 70 as children, and the majority of adults with scores in the average range had scored in this range by age 3. However, within the lower ranges…

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often co-occur. Children with ASD and ADHD demonstrate deficits in adaptive functioning, yet pure and comorbid groups have not been directly compared. Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scales (VABS-II) data were examined in boys with ASD (n = 17), ADHD (n = 31) and…

The health-related quality of life of school-aged children with high-functioning autism is poorly understood. The objectives of this study were to compare the health-related quality of life of children with high-functioning autism to that of typically developing peers and to compare child-self and parent-proxy reports of health-related quality of…

The Autism Spectrum Disorder Observation for Children (ASD-OC) is a 45-item observation scale used to assess autistic symptomatology. The reliability of this measure has been established in previous research; therefore, the purpose of this study is to evaluate its validity among a sample of children (1-15 years). The large correlation between the…

The Social Attribution Task, Multiple Choice is introduced as a measure of implicit social cognitive ability in children, addressing a key challenge in quantification of social cognitive function in autism spectrum disorder, whereby individuals can often be successful in explicit social scenarios, despite marked social adaptive deficits. The…

This study explored the effects of an evidence-based literacy program, ABRACADABRA, on the spelling abilities of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Twenty children with ASD aged 5-11 years were assigned to matched instruction and waitlist control groups. Children in the instruction group received 26 hrs of individualized, home-based…

To date, reports of empirically validated comprehensive intervention programs for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been limited to preschool-age children. We examined the effects of a model inclusive kindergarten program for children with ASD. Forty-one children received instruction in an inclusive kindergarten program with their…

This research addresses the challenges of assessing receptive language abilities in minimally verbal children with autism spectrum disorder by comparing several adapted measurement tools: a standardized direct assessment of receptive vocabulary (i.e. Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-4); caregiver report measures including scores on the Vineland-II…

This study examines the academic abilities of children and adolescents who were once diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, but who no longer meet diagnostic criteria for this disorder. These individuals have achieved social and language skills within the average range for their ages, receive little or no school support, and are referred to…

This paper includes a nontechnical description of methods for calculating effect sizes in intellectual and developmental disability studies. Different hypothetical studies are used to illustrate how null hypothesis significance testing (NHST) and effect size findings can result in quite different outcomes and therefore conflicting results. Whereas…

The purpose of this study is to provide a microanalysis of differences in adaptive functioning seen between well-matched groups of school-aged children with autism and those diagnosed as having Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified, all of whom functioned in the mild to moderate range of intellectual impairment. Findings…

LEGO[C] building materials have been adapted as a therapeutic modality for increasing motivation to participate in social skills intervention, and providing a medium through which children with social and communication handicaps can effectively interact. A 3 year retrospective study of long-term outcome for autistic spectrum children participating…