Exploring the Sensory Profiles of Children on the Autism Spectrum Using the Short Sensory Profile-2 (SSP-2)

Simpson, Kate; Adams, Dawn; Alston-Knox, Clair; Heussler, Helen S.; Keen, Deb

doi:10.1007/s10803-019-03889-2

Original Paper
Published: 23 January 2019

Exploring the Sensory Profiles of Children on the Autism Spectrum Using the Short Sensory Profile-2 (SSP-2)

Kate Simpson ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-0743-7304^1,2,
Dawn Adams^1,2,
Clair Alston-Knox³,
Helen S. Heussler^2,4,5,6 &
Deb Keen^1,2

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders volume 49, pages 2069–2079 (2019)Cite this article

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Abstract

The aim of this study was to identify sensory subtypes in children on the autism spectrum using the Short Sensory Profile-2 (SSP-2). Caregivers of children on the autism spectrum aged 4–11 years (n = 271) completed the SSP-2. Analysis using Dirichlet process mixture model identified a two-cluster model which provided the best solution to subtype sensory responses. Two distinct subtypes were identified: Uniformly elevated (67%) with high scores across all quadrants and Raised avoiding and sensitivity (33%) with raised scores in the avoiding and sensitivity quadrants. There were no differences between subtypes based on chronological age and autism characteristics measured using the social communication questionnaire (total score). Based on the SSP-2, children were reported to experience differences in responses to sensory input, in particular in the area of sensitivity and avoiding.

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Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the work of the LASA team members: Susan Bruck, Trevor Clark, Sandra Devaraj, Robyn Garland, Antoinette Hodge, Patricia Howlin, Jessica Paynter, Natalie Silove, David Trembath, Madonna Tucker, Marleen Westerveld, Katrina Williams. The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Cooperative Research Centre for Living with Autism (Autism CRC), established and supported under the Australian Government’s Cooperative Research Centres Program.

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Affiliations

Autism Centre of Excellence, School of Education and Professional Studies, Griffith University, Messines Ridge Road, Mt Gravatt, Brisbane, QLD, 4122, Australia
Kate Simpson, Dawn Adams & Deb Keen
Cooperative Research Centre for Living with Autism (Autism CRC), Indooroopilly, Brisbane, Australia
Kate Simpson, Dawn Adams, Helen S. Heussler & Deb Keen
Griffith Social and Behavioural Research College, Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Clair Alston-Knox
Mater Research Institute, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Helen S. Heussler
Children’s Health Research Centre, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Helen S. Heussler
Child Development Program Children’s Health Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Helen S. Heussler

Authors

Kate Simpson
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Dawn Adams
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Clair Alston-Knox
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Helen S. Heussler
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Deb Keen
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Contributions

KS conceived of the study, participated in its design and coordination, interpretation of the data, and drafted the manuscript; DA participated in the design and interpretation of the data and helped to draft the manuscript; CA participated in the design, performed the statistical analysis and participated in the interpretation of the data; HH participated in its design and coordination and helped to draft the manuscript. DK participated in the conception of the study, the design and coordination of the study and helped to draft the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Kate Simpson.

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Simpson, K., Adams, D., Alston-Knox, C. et al. Exploring the Sensory Profiles of Children on the Autism Spectrum Using the Short Sensory Profile-2 (SSP-2). J Autism Dev Disord 49, 2069–2079 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-019-03889-2

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Published: 23 January 2019
Issue Date: 15 May 2019
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-019-03889-2

Keywords

Children
Autism
Sensory
Subtypes