The prevalence of autistic spectrum condition in a community offender sample

Advances in Autism,Volume 2, Issue 4, October 2016. Purpose Previous prevalence studies of likely Autistic Spectrum Condition (ASC) within criminal justice settings have focussed on specialist forensic mental health settings. This is the first study of its kind to examine prevalence of autism in a general community forensic sample. Design/methodology/approach 336 offenders managed by a probation office were administered with a recognised screening tool to identify likely autism (AQ-10). Screenings were scored and those above the threshold were identified. Where possible further diagnostic information was sought on positive-screened cases. Findings 4.5% (15 offenders) of the caseload screened positive for autism. Descriptive demographic information such as gender, age and offence type is provided for this group. Further diagnostic information was available on 8 of the cases. 3 already had an autism diagnosis and further psychometric assessment indicated that a further 3 cases were 80% likely to be diagnosable with autism. Research limitations/implications Demographic information on the sample could not be compared with norms across the whole probation caseload due to limitation of resources for the project. No further diagnostic information was available on 6 offenders who screened positive for autism. Practical implications The research indicates that autism is not substantially over-represented in a large community offender sample although further research is required t...
Source: Advances in Autism - Category: Child Development Source Type: research