Contrasting Views of Autism Spectrum Traits in Adults, Especially in Self-Reports vs. Informant-Reports for Women High in Autism Spectrum Traits

Sara C Taylor; Brielle N Gehringer; Holly C Dow; Allison Langer; Eric Rawot; Zoe Smernoff; Samantha Steeman; Laura Almasy; Daniel J Rader; Maja Bučan; Edward S Brodkin

doi:10.1007/s10803-022-05822-6

Contrasting Views of Autism Spectrum Traits in Adults, Especially in Self-Reports vs. Informant-Reports for Women High in Autism Spectrum Traits

J Autism Dev Disord. 2024 Mar;54(3):1088-1100. doi: 10.1007/s10803-022-05822-6. Epub 2022 Dec 9.

Authors

Sara C Taylor^{1

2

3}, Brielle N Gehringer^{1

2}, Holly C Dow^{1

2}, Allison Langer^{1

2}, Eric Rawot^{1

2}, Zoe Smernoff^{1

2}, Samantha Steeman^{1

2}, Laura Almasy^{2

4

5}, Daniel J Rader², Maja Bučan^{1

2}, Edward S Brodkin⁶

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market Street, Suite 3080, Philadelphia, PA, 19104-3309, USA.
² Department of Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine, Clinical Research Building, 415 Curie Boulevard, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104-6145, USA.
³ Neuroscience Graduate Group, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
⁴ Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
⁵ Lifespan Brain Institute, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
⁶ Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market Street, Suite 3080, Philadelphia, PA, 19104-3309, USA. [email protected].

Abstract

There is uncertainty among researchers and clinicians about how to best measure autism spectrum dimensional traits in adults. In a sample of adults with high levels of autism spectrum traits and without intellectual disability (probands, n = 103) and their family members (n = 96), we sought to compare self vs. informant reports of autism spectrum-related traits and possible effects of sex on discrepancies. Using correlational analysis, we found poor agreement between self- and informant-report measures for probands, yet moderate agreement for family members. We found reporting discrepancy was greatest for female probands, often self-reporting more autism-related behaviors. Our findings suggest that autism spectrum traits are often underrecognized by informants, making self-report data important to collect in clinical and research settings.

Keywords: Adult; Autism spectrum; Female; Phenotype; Self-report.

MeSH terms

Adult
Autism Spectrum Disorder* / diagnosis
Autistic Disorder*
Child
Child Development Disorders, Pervasive*
Family
Female
Humans
Self Report

Abstract

MeSH terms

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