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The Autism Spectrum Quotient: Children’s Version (AQ-Child)

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Abstract

The Autism Spectrum Quotient—Children’s Version (AQ-Child) is a parent-report questionnaire that aims to quantify autistic traits in children 4–11 years old. The range of scores on the AQ-Child is 0–150. It was administered to children with an autism spectrum condition (ASC) (n = 540) and a general population sample (n = 1,225). Results showed a significant difference in scores between those with an ASC diagnosis and the general population. Receiver-operating-characteristic analyses showed that using a cut-off score of 76, the AQ-Child has high sensitivity (95%) and specificity (95%). The AQ-Child showed good test–retest reliability and high internal consistency. Factor analysis provided support for four of the five AQ-Child design subscales. Future studies should evaluate how the AQ-C performs in population screening.

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Notes

  1. The concept of the broader autism phenotype has emerged from research which suggests that in addition to causing autism, the genetic liability for this disorder may also be expressed, in the nonautistic relatives of autistic individuals, through behavioral and cognitive characteristics that are milder but qualitatively similar to the defining features of autism.

  2. Formerly known as the Childhood Asperger syndrome test, but renamed keeping the same acronym because it can be used for all subgroups on the autistic spectrum.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Nancy Lurie-Marks Family Foundation and the MRC, UK. Bonnie Auyeung was supported by a scholarship from Trinity College, Cambridge. We are grateful to the families who have taken part in this study over several years and to Rosa Hoekstra and Nigel Goldenfeld for valuable discussions.

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Correspondence to Bonnie Auyeung.

Appendix 1: The Autism Spectrum Quotient—Children’s Version (AQ-Child)

Appendix 1: The Autism Spectrum Quotient—Children’s Version (AQ-Child)

 

Definitely Agree

Slightly Agree

Slightly Disagree

Definitely Disagree

1. S/he prefers to do things with others rather than on her/his own

    

2. S/he prefers to do things the same way over and over again

    

3. If s/he tries to imagine something, s/he finds it very easy to create a picture in her/his mind

    

4. S/he frequently gets so strongly absorbed in one thing that s/he loses sight of other things

    

5. S/he often notices small sounds when others do not

    

6. S/he usually notices house numbers or similar strings of informationa

    

7. S/he has difficulty understanding rules for polite behaviora

    

8. When s/he is reading a story, s/he can easily imagine what the characters might look likea

    

9. S/he is fascinated by dates

    

10. In a social group, s/he can easily keep track of several different people’s conversations

    

11. S/he finds social situations easy

    

12. S/he tends to notice details that others do not

    

13. S/he would rather go to a library than a birthday partya

    

14. S/he finds making up stories easy

    

15. S/he is drawn more strongly to people than to thingsa

    

16. S/he tends to have very strong interests, which s/he gets upset about if s/he cannot pursue

    

17. S/he enjoys social chit-chat

    

18. When s/he talks, it is not always easy for others to get a word in edgeways

    

19. S/he is fascinated by numbers

    

20. When s/he is reading a story, s/he finds it difficult to work out the characters’ intentions or feelingsa

    

21. S/he does not particularly enjoy fictional storiesa

    

22. S/he finds it hard to make new friends

    

23. S/he notices patterns in things all the time

    

24. S/he would rather go to the cinema than a museuma

    

25. It does not upset him/her if his/her daily routine is disturbed

    

26. S/he does not know how to keep a conversation going with her/his peersa

    

27. S/he finds it easy to “read between the lines” when someone is talking to her/him

    

28. S/he usually concentrates more on the whole picture, rather than the small details

    

29. S/he is not very good at remembering phone numbers

    

30. S/he does not usually notice small changes in a situation, or a person’s appearance

    

31. S/he knows how to tell if someone listening to him/her is getting bored

    

32. S/he finds it easy to go back and forth between different activitiesa

    

33. When s/he talks on the phone, s/he is not sure when it is her/his turn to speak

    

34. S/he enjoys doing things spontaneously

    

35. S/he is often the last to understand the point of a joke.

    

36. S/he finds it easy to work out what someone is thinking or feeling just by looking at their face

    

37. If there is an interruption, s/he can switch back to what s/he was doing very quickly

    

38. S/he is good at social chit-chat

    

39. People often tell her/him that s/he keeps going on and on about the same thing

    

40. When s/he was in preschool, s/he used to enjoy playing games involving pretending with other childrena

    

41. S/he likes to collect information about categories of things (e.g., types of car, types of bird, types of train, types of plant, etc.)

    

42. S/he finds it difficult to imagine what it would be like to be someone else

    

43. S/he likes to plan any activities s/he participates in carefully

    

44. S/he enjoys social occasions

    

45. S/he finds it difficult to work out people’s intentions

    

46. New situations make him/her anxious

    

47. S/he enjoys meeting new people

    

48. S/he is good at taking care not to hurt other people’s feelingsa

    

49. S/he is not very good at remembering people’s date of birth

    

50. S/he finds it very to easy to play games with children that involve pretending

    
  1. Note: Aside from the self-report to parent-report format change, items were changed as little as possible
  2. aDenotes items that were changed substantially

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Auyeung, B., Baron-Cohen, S., Wheelwright, S. et al. The Autism Spectrum Quotient: Children’s Version (AQ-Child). J Autism Dev Disord 38, 1230–1240 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-007-0504-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-007-0504-z

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