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When does the Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire (ASSQ) predict autism spectrum disorders in primary school-aged children?

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Abstract

The aims of this study were, firstly, to study the association between parents’ and teachers’ ratings for the Finnish version of the Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire (ASSQ), secondly, to find out whether the original cut-off scores of the ASSQ identify primary school-aged children with Asperger syndrome (AS) or autism by using the Finnish ASSQ, and thirdly, to evaluate the validity of the ASSQ. Parents and/or teachers of higher-functioning (full-scale intelligence quotient ≥ 50) 8-year-old total population school children (n = 4,408) and 7–12-year-old outpatients with AS/autism (n = 47) completed the Finnish version of the ASSQ. Agreement between informants was slight. In the whole total population, low positive correlation was found between parents’ and teachers’ ratings, while in the sample of high-scoring children the correlation turned out to be negative. A cut-off of 30 for parents’ and teacher's summed score and 22 for teachers’ single score is recommended. A valid cut-off for parents’ single score could not been estimated. The clinicians are reminded that the ASSQ is a screening instrument, not a diagnosing instrument. The importance of using both parents’ and teachers’ ratings for screening in clinical settings is underlined.

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Acknowledgments

We want to thank the children and their parents, the teachers and the entire staff of the schools for participating in this study. We thank chief psychologist Terttu Tapio and clinical psychologist Kati Wedman for their comments and help with this study. The Graduate School of Circumpolar Wellbeing, Health and Adaptation is acknowledged for their support. This study received financial support from Finland’s Slot Machine Association awarded to the Finnish Association for Autism and Asperger’s Syndrome and from the Child Psychiatric Research Foundation, Finland, awarded to the Eija and Veikko Lesonen Foundation, Oulu, Finland. Dr. Marja-Leena Mattila received research grants from the Rinnekoti Research Foundation, Espoo, Finland, the Alma and K. A. Snellman Foundation, Oulu, Finland, the Child Psychiatric Research Foundation, Finland, the Child Psychiatric Research Foundation, Oulu Area, Finland, and the Oulu Medical Research Foundation, Oulu, Finland. Psychologist Katja Jussila received a research grant from the Alma and K. A. Snellman Foundation, Oulu, Finland, and psychologist Sanna Kuusikko from the Alma and K. A. Snellman Foundation Oulu, Finland, and the Child Psychiatric Research Foundation, Finland. This particular study was also financially supported by a National Alliance for Autism Research (NAAR) grant awarded to professor David Pauls.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Clinic of Child Psychiatry, University Hospital of Oulu, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 26, 90029, Oulu, Finland

    Marja-Leena Mattila, Katja Jussila, Sanna Kuusikko, Hanna Ebeling, Leena Joskitt & Irma Moilanen

  2. Department of Educational Sciences and Teacher Education, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 2000, 90014, Oulu, Finland

    Marko Kielinen

  3. Department of Public Health and General Practice, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 5000, 90014, Oulu, Finland

    Sirkka-Liisa Linna

  4. Medical Informatics Group, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 5000, 90014, Oulu, Finland

    Risto Bloigu

  5. Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit, Center for Human Genetic Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA, USA

    David Pauls

Authors
  1. Marja-Leena Mattila
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  2. Katja Jussila
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  3. Sanna Kuusikko
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  4. Marko Kielinen
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  5. Sirkka-Liisa Linna
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  6. Hanna Ebeling
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  7. Risto Bloigu
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  8. Leena Joskitt
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  9. David Pauls
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  10. Irma Moilanen
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Correspondence to Marja-Leena Mattila.

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Mattila, ML., Jussila, K., Kuusikko, S. et al. When does the Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire (ASSQ) predict autism spectrum disorders in primary school-aged children?. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 18, 499–509 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-009-0044-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-009-0044-5

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