Screening Methods for Identification of the Target Group Autism Spectrum For Special Education Teachers and Psychologists

We present three screening instruments which can be used by special education teachers and psychologists for assessment of children who may belong to the intervention target group “autism spectrum”. Two of these instruments (Social Communication Questionnaire and Checklist for Autism Spectrum Disorders) are parent/caregiver questionnaires and one (Autism Mental Status Exam) is a short observation schedule. All three methods were used with 132 children with conditions associated with autism spectrum, other developmental conditions, as well as typically developing children. Correlation coefficient values ranged from 0.7 to 0.82 for the pairwise comparison of the three overall scores. They provide evidence for significant convergent validity of the methods. The article discusses the strong sides of every instrument that professionals may find useful when choosing instruments for their diagnostic toolbox.

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