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Are autistic traits in the general population stable across development?
Andrew J O Whitehouse1, Martha Hickey, Angelica Ronald
1Telethon Institute for Child Health Research, Centre for Child Health Research, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia. awhitehouse@ichr.uwa.edu.au
Plos One
|August 11, 2011
Summary
Autistic traits (AT) show modest stability in social behaviors from childhood to adulthood in boys. However, overall autistic traits did not demonstrate significant long-term stability in this general population study.
Area of Science:
- Developmental psychology
- Neurodevelopmental disorders
- Behavioral genetics
Background:
- Autistic traits (AT) exist on a continuum in the general population.
- Clinical autism represents the extreme end of this continuum.
- Long-term stability of AT in typically developing toddlers is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the long-term stability of autistic traits (AT) from early childhood to early adulthood in a general population sample.
- To differentiate between social and non-social AT.
- To assess the influence of sociodemographic, antenatal, and obstetric variables.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study measuring AT in males at two time points: early childhood (approx. 2 years) and early adulthood (approx. 19.5 years).
- Utilized the Pervasive Developmental Disorder subscale of the Child Behavior Checklist and the Autism-Spectrum Quotient.
- Categorized AT into social (social interaction/communication) and non-social (restricted/repetitive behaviors/interests) components.
Main Results:
- For males, total AT in childhood positively correlated with total and social AT in adulthood.
- Social AT in childhood also positively correlated with total and social AT in adulthood for males.
- Non-social AT and overall AT stability were not significant in males; no significant longitudinal associations were found for females.
Conclusions:
- Modest developmental stability of social autistic traits (AT) from early childhood to adulthood was observed in boys.
- The findings suggest potential early indicators for social AT, but overall AT stability was limited.
- Further research is needed to understand the complex developmental trajectories of autistic traits.
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