Chinese Norms for the Autism Spectrum Rating Scale

This study aimed to establish norms for the modified Chinese version of the Autism Spectrum Rating Scale (ASRS). Participants were recruited from Shanghai, Harbin, Guangzhou, and Changsha, China, and their parents and teachers were invited to complete the Chinese Parent version and the Teacher version of the ASRS. In both versions, boys had significantly higher sub-scale scores and total score (T-score) by 1-3 and 4-5 points respectively, than girls (both P < 0.001). Age had weak correlations with some sub-scores and the T-score (r ranged from -0.1859 to 0.0738), and some reached significance (P < 0.03). The correlations appeared stronger and were more common in females. The T-score based on Chinese norms ideally correlated with the score based on the United States norms in boys and girls for both versions. Norms for the Chinese version of the ASRS for children aged 6-12 years are proposed and may be helpful for screening individuals with autism spectrum disorders from the general population of children.