Abstract
We examined the influence of a child's IQ level, presence of a language delay, and his desire to engage others in social interaction on clinicians' diagnosis of Asperger's Disorder. Seventy-four clinicians read an excerpt from a fictional psychological report and recommended a primary diagnosis for the child described in the report. Results indicated that presence of a delay in language milestones decreased likelihood but did not rule out an Asperger's diagnosis. In addition, a higher IQ and a desire to engage others in social interaction when combined with an absence of a language delay significantly increased the likelihood of an Asperger's diagnosis. Results of this study suggest that, when presented with a high-functioning child exhibiting symptoms within the autistic spectrum, clinicians do attend to elements of the DSM-IV criteria when considering differential diagnosis, but do so in conjunction with other factors.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
American Psychiatric Association (1994). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, (4th ed.), Author, Washington, DC.
American Psychiatric Association (2000). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, (4th ed., Text Revision.), Author, Washington, DC.
Dawes, R. M. (1994). House of cards: Psychology and Psychotherapy Built on Myth, The Free Press, New York.
Eisenmajer, R., Prior, M., Leekam, S., Wing, L., Gould, J., Welham, M., and Ong, B. (1996). Comparison of clinical symptoms in autism and Asperger's disorder. J. Am. Acad. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry 35: 1523–1531.
Eisenmajer, R., Prior, M., Leekam, S., Wing, L., Ong, B., Gould, J., and Welham, M. (1998). Delayed language onset as a predictor of clinical symptoms in pervasive developmental disorders. J. Autism Dev. Disord. 28: 527–533.
Freeman, B. J., Cronin, P., and Candela, P. (2002). Asperger syndrome or autistic disorder? The diagnostic dilemma. Focus Autism Other Dev. Disabil. 17: 145–151.
Huebner, S. E. (1991). Bias in special education decisions: The contribution of analogue research. School Psychol. Q. 6: 50–65.
Klin, A., and Volkmar, F. R. (2003). Asperger syndrome: Diagnosis and external validity. Child Adolesc. Psychiatric. Clin. 12: 1–13.
Kugler, B. (1998). The differentiation between autism and Asperger's syndrome. Autism 2: 11–32.
Leekam, S., Libby, S., Wing, L., Gould, J., and Gillberg, C. (2000). Comparison of ICD-10 and Gillberg's criteria for Asperger syndrome. Autism 4: 11–28.
Mayes, S. D., and Calhoun, S. L. (2001). Non-significance of early speech delay in children with autism and normal intelligence and implications for DSM-IV Asperger's disorder. Autism 5: 81–94.
Mayes, S. D., and Calhoun, S. L. (2004). Influence of IQ and age in childhood autism: Lack of support for DSM-IV Asperger's Disorder. J. Dev. Phys. Disabil. 16: 257–272.
Mayes, S. D., Calhoun, S. L., and Crites, D. L. (2001). Does DSM-IV Asperger's disorder exist? J. Abnorm. Child Psychol. 29: 263–271.
Szatmari, P., Archer, L., Fisman, S., Streiner, D. L., and Wilson, F. (1995). Asperger's syndrome and autism: Differences in behavior, cognition, and adaptive functioning. J. Am. Acad. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry 34: 1662–1671.
Volkmar, F. R., and Klin, A. (2000). Diagnostic issues in Asperger syndrome. In Klin, A., Volkmar, F. M., and Sparrow, S. S. (eds.), Asperger Syndrome, Guilford Press, New York, pp. 25–71.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sciutto, M.J., Cantwell, C. Factors Influencing the Differential Diagnosis of Asperger's Disorder and High-Functioning Autism. J Dev Phys Disabil 17, 345–359 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-005-6618-3
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-005-6618-3