Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders

, Volume 46, Issue 8, pp 2821–2829 | Cite as

Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder and Its Relation to the Autism Spectrum: Dilemmas Arising From the DSM-5 Classification

Commentary
First Online:

Abstract

DSM-5 introduced two diagnoses describing neurodevelopmental deficits in social communication (SC); Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder (SPCD). These diagnoses are differentiated by Repetitive and Restricted Behaviors (RRB), required for an ASD diagnosis and absent in SPCD. We highlight the gaps between the research into SPCD and DSM-5’s diagnostic criteria, and discuss the clinical implications of this diagnostic decision. We argue that DSM-5’s demand for full manifestation of both SC and RRB axes when diagnosing ASD, prematurely forced a categorical view on the continual nature of the potentially dependent SC and RRB phenotypes. We conclude by highlighting the implications of this differential diagnostic decision on public health policies, designated therapy, and the need for further research regarding SPCD.

Keywords

Social communication disorder Autism spectrum disorder Phenotype Differential diagnosis Treatment Services 
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Notes

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Dr. Raya Ariel for her useful comments on a previous version of this paper.

Funding

The first and last authors received funding for this study by the Israeli Ministry of Science, Technology, and Space (Grant Number 10842).

Author Contributions

The authors have each made substantial contributions to the creation of this commentary. The last author read and approved the final manuscript.

Compliance with Ethical Standards

Conflict of interest

All authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.

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© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2016

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Department of PsychologyBar-Ilan UniversityRamat-GanIsrael
  2. 2.Association for Children at RiskGivat ShmuelIsrael
  3. 3.Sackler Faculty of MedicineTel-Aviv UniversityTel-AvivIsrael
  4. 4.Yale Child Study CenterNew-HavenUSA

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