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…

This study examined the similarities/differences between the social phenotypes of Williams syndrome (WS) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). As cultural norms may affect symptom evaluation, this study administered the Social Responsiveness Scale-2 to Japanese individuals with WS (n = 78, 4.4-44.0 years) and ASD (n = 75, 4.7-55.4 years). The scores…

The Social Shapes Test (SST) is a measure of social intelligence which does not use human faces or rely on extensive verbal ability. The SST has shown promising validity among adults without autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but it is uncertain whether it is suitable for adults with ASD. We find measurement invariance between adults with (n = 229)…

Parents participating in a prospective longitudinal study of infants with older siblings with autism completed an autism screening questionnaire and were asked about any concerns relating to their child's development, and children were administered an interactive assessment conducted by a researcher at 14 months. Scores on the parent questionnaire…

This non-randomised pilot study evaluated the impact of a community football program on motor ability in children aged 5-12 years with autism spectrum disorder. Sixteen children were evaluated at baseline-and-post attendance in a football program for a varied number of weeks and compared to 19 children engaging in treatment-as-usual. Primary…

We explored sensory features as distinguishing characteristics of Autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Four groups of males (n = 36): Six with 47, XYY syndrome and ASD (XYY+ASD), six with 47, XYY syndrome and no ASD (XYY-ASD), 12 with idiopathic ASD (ASD-I) and 12 typically developing (TYP). The short sensory profile (SSP) the sensory challenge…

Interoceptive accuracy has been widely measured using the Heartbeat Tracking Test (HTT). We devised the novel paradigm of Interoception-Exteroception Synchronicity Judgement (IESJ) task to assess participants' interoceptive accuracy, exteroceptive accuracy, and the balancing score which reflected the ability to allocate attentions between…

Little is known about the across time stability of autistic traits during the transition period from preschool to school age in the general population. The current study compared autistic traits assessed by a mother-reported quantitative measure, the Social Responsiveness Scale, at age 5 and 8 years and examined the intraclass correlation…

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and hyperlexia (HPL) have both advanced word reading skills and a reading comprehension disorder, alongside impaired oral language. We developed a unique, parent-supported, tablet-based intervention aiming to improve oral and reading comprehension at the word-, phrase- and sentence-level, for…

This study compared oral health behaviours and barriers to dental care among preschool children with and without ASD, and evaluated dental knowledge and attitudes of their parents. 257 preschoolers with ASD and an age- and gender-matched control sample were recruited. Children with ASD had less frequently performed tooth-brushing and used…

This study aimed to compare symptoms of autism spectrum disorder using the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) and the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS™-2) and to investigate their influencing factors. The diagnostic agreement was 92.7%, but with a fair Kappa value (0.247). Children's verbal comprehension was related to the CARS scores, and no…

Typically developing adults with low and high Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) scores made rapid social evaluations of neutral faces when these were primed by briefly presented emotional faces. High AQ participants rated neutral faces as more threatening than low AQ participants, regardless of the prime condition. Both groups rated target neutral…

We studied 28 adolescents/young adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and 13 age/sex matched individuals of typical development (TD). Structured sleep histories, validated questionnaires, actigraphy (4 weeks), and salivary cortisol and melatonin (4 days each) were collected. Compared to those with TD, adolescents/young adults with ASD had…

Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) is widely used to estimate autistic intelligence (Joseph in The neuropsychology of autism. Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2011; Goldstein et al. in "Assessment of autism spectrum disorders." Guilford Press, New York, 2008; Mottron in "J Autism Dev Disord" 34(1):19-27, 2004).…

The nature of neurochemical changes in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) remains controversial. We compared medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) neurochemistry of twenty high-functioning children and adolescents with ASD without associated comorbidities and fourteen controls. We observed reduced total N-acetylaspartate (tNAA) and total creatine, increased…