Examining the Reliability of an Online Assessment of Autism-Related Traits in Adults Público

Abstract

Importance: For adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), access to healthcare services is sparse and limited. As ASD grows in prevalence, the need for reliable but rapid assessments is becoming increasingly acknowledged.

Objective: To investigate the reliability of an online assessment of ASD in an adult population.

Participants: A 65% female participant group aged 18 to 80 (average age = 36.3; SD=14.3) were categorized into three subgroups: those reporting an official diagnosis of ASD (n=11), those reporting a suspected diagnosis of ASD (n=17), and those reporting no concerns of ASD (i.e., neurotypical controls, n=33).

Measures: Brief Assessment of Autism Symptoms for Adults (BAASA), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), HEXACO Personality Inventory- Revised (HEXACO-PI-R) and a background information questionnaire.

Results: The BAASA demonstrated good interrater reliability (% agreement = 88.9) and ROC curve analysis showed it was extremely accurate in identifying those with ASD from neurotypical controls (area under the curve = 1, specificity = 1, sensitivity =1). Significant correlations were observed between BAASA scores and HADS subtest scores for anxiety (r =0.463, p < 0.001) and depression (r = 0.332, p = 0.009), as well as HEXACO-PI-R subtest scores for extraversion p < 0.001).

Conclusion: The BAASA is a reliable and accurate remote assessment of ASD for adults. Self- report of emotions and personality traits (specifically extraversion) showed moderate overlap with the report of ASD-related symptoms and provided supplemental information. A remote platform may be especially useful in providing practical and accessible health care services for adults with ASD. 

Table of Contents

Table of Abbreviations...............................................................................1

Chapter 1. Introduction.............................................................................2

Brief Description of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)..................................2

Prevalence................................................................................................2

Diagnostic Process....................................................................................4

Diagnostic Criteria....................................................................................4

Assessment of ASD....................................................................................6

Resource Disparity in Adults.......................................................................8

Utility of Remote Assessment..................................... ................................8

Development of Remote Assessment...........................................................9

Thesis Aims and Hypotheses......................................................................10

Chapter 2. Methods...................................................................................13

Study Population and Recruitment Procedures............................................13

Study Design.............................................................................................13

Rater Training...........................................................................................14

Measures..................................................................................................14

Data Screening..........................................................................................18

Statistical Analyses....................................................................................18

Chapter 3. Results.......................................................................................21

Sample Demographics.................................................................................21

Descriptive Statistics...................................................................................21

Correlations................................................................................................21

Interrater Reliability....................................................................................22

ROC Curve Analysis.....................................................................................22

Chapter 4. Discussion...................................................................................23

HADS Correlations.......................................................................................23

HEXACO-PI-R Correlations...........................................................................24

BAASA Reliability and Diagnostic Accuracy....................................................24

Limitations..................................................................................................26

Future Directions.........................................................................................26

Conclusion...................................................................................................27

Tables and Figures........................................................................................28

Table 1. Population Subgroup Demographics..................................................28

Table 2. Means and Standard Deviations for BAASA, HADS and HEXACO-PI-R Assessments Organized by Subgroups..........................29

Table 3. Summary of Tested Null Hypotheses..................................................................30

Figure 1. Distribution of BAASA Scores between Subgroups..........................................31

Figure 2. Relationship between Scores: BAASA and HADS Subtests for Anxiety and Depression.........................32

Figure 3. Relationship between Scores: BAASA and HEXACO-PI-R Subtest for Extraversion...............................33

Figure 4. Agreement in BAASA Scores between Two Raters..........................................34

Figure 5. ROC Curve Analysis.....................................................................................35

References................................................................................................................36 

About this Honors Thesis

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School	Emory College
Department	Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology
Degree	B.S.
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Psychology, Clinical Psychology, Psychometrics
Palabra Clave	autism spectrum disorder
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Opal Ousley, Emory University
Committee Members	Jennifer Mascaro, Emory University Lori Teague, Emory University

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