Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are at increased risk for bullying victimization. School refusal is a 'red flag' for identification of bullying in children with ASD and/or ADHD. This study examined the impact of diagnoses, demographics, and school variables on school refusal due to…

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) research is largely based on males, and females with ASD are at risk for under-identification. Research recommends listening to parent concerns since these are often predictive of a child's eventual diagnosis. This study examined how patterns of parent concerns predicted sex differences and eventual child diagnosis…

During the diagnostic evaluation period for autism or intellectual disability (ID), families of young children are at risk for poor adjustment. The present study aimed to document family quality of life (FQOL), along with associated risk and protective factors, during this critical step of families' services trajectory. FQOL was measured in a…

The DSM-5 features level of support ratings for social communication (SC) and restrictive and repetitive behaviors (RRB) for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We contrasted cognitive, adaptive, and autism severity scores across SC and RRB groups for 158 individuals with ASD diagnosed in a developmental disabilities clinic. Roughly…

The Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ) and the Social Responsiveness Scales (SRS) are commonly used screeners for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Data from the Study to Explore Early Development were used to examine variations in the performance of these instruments by child characteristics and family demographics. For both instruments,…

This study investigated the prevalence and type of gastrointestinal (GI) and food selectivity (FS) symptoms in 163 preschoolers with ASD, and their possible links with core ASD features and emotional/behavioural problems. 40.5% of children with ASD had at least one severe GI symptom or FS. Preschoolers with and without GI symptoms and with and…

The study presents neuropsychiatric profiles of children aged 11 with autism spectrum disorder, assessed before 4.5 years, and after interventions. The original group comprised a community sample of 208 children with ASD. Parents of 128 participated--34 with average intellectual function, 36 with borderline intellectual function and 58 with…

In the present study, we jointly employ and integrate variable- and person-centered approaches to identify groups of individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) who have similar profiles of change over a period of 10 years across three critical domains of functioning: maladaptive behaviors, autism symptoms, and daily living skills. Two…

The current study sought to understand the relation between diagnostic status (autism spectrum disorders [ASD] versus typically developing) and internalizing problems in children with and without co-occurring attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms. Participants were 88 children, ages 3:0-6:11, their parents and teachers. Findings…

We examined whether "discrete trial training" (DTT) could be used to identify learning impairments in mathematical reasoning in boys with fragile X syndrome (FXS). Boys with FXS, aged 10-23 years, and age and IQ-matched controls, were trained to match fractions to pie-charts and pie-charts to decimals either on a computer or with a…

The current study examined depressive symptoms, concerning the week following autism spectrum diagnosis and an average of 1.4 years later, in mothers (n = 75) of young children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Over three-quarters of mothers (78.7%) provided retrospective reports of clinically significant depressive symptoms…

We examined whether clinically distinct subgroups can be derived from a sample of toddlers (n = 186) who failed the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers, received a comprehensive clinical evaluation, and were diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Three subgroups emerged from cluster analysis distinguished by (a) social,…

We investigated the prevalence and phenomenology of repetitive behavior in genetic syndromes to detail profiles of behavior. The Repetitive Behaviour Questionnaire (RBQ) provides fine-grained identification of repetitive behaviors. The RBQ was employed to examine repetitive behavior in Angelman (N = 104), Cornelia de Lange (N = 101), Cri-du-Chat…