Toward a Best-Practice Protocol for Assessment of Sensory Features in ASD

Sensory difficulties are a commonly occurring feature of autism spectrum disorders and are now included as one manifestation of the ‘restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities’ diagnostic criteria of the DSM5 necessitating guidelines for comprehensive assessment of these features. To facilitate the development of such guidelines, this paper provides an overview of the literature on sensory features in autism spectrum disorder. We summarize the literature pertaining to: terminology, current assessment practices, sensory development, and the relationship of sensory features to core symptoms of autism. The paper concludes with recommendations for clinical assessment of sensory features in Autism.