Repository logo
 

Child, Maternal and Demographic Factors Influencing Caregiver-Reported Autistic Trait Symptomatology in Toddlers.

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

Loading...
Thumbnail Image

Type

Article

Change log

Authors

Goh, DA 
Gan, D 
Kung, J 

Abstract

Current research on children's autistic traits in the general population relies predominantly on caregiver-report, yet the extent to which individual, caregiver or demographic characteristics are associated with informants' ratings has not been sufficiently explored. In this study, caregivers of 396 Singaporean two-year-olds from a birth cohort study completed the Quantitative Checklist for Autism in Toddlers. Children's gender, cognitive functioning and birth order, maternal age, and ethnic group membership were not significant predictors of caregiver-reported autistic traits. Poorer child language development and higher maternal depressive symptoms significantly predicted more social-communicative autistic traits, while lower maternal education predicted more behavioural autistic traits. Children's language and informants' educational level and depressive symptomatology may need to be considered in caregiver-reports of autistic traits.

Description

Keywords

Autistic traits, Child, Demographic, Informant, Measurement, Predictors., Autistic Disorder, Caregivers, Checklist, Child Language, Child, Preschool, Cohort Studies, Educational Status, Female, Humans, Male, Mothers, Singapore, Symptom Assessment

Journal Title

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0162-3257
1573-3432

Volume Title

48

Publisher

Springer-Nature
Sponsorship
National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) (via Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust (CPFT) (unknown)
This research is supported by the Singapore National Research Foundation under its Translational and Clinical Research (TCR) Flagship Programme and administered by the Singapore Ministry of Health’s National Medical Research Council (NMRC), Singapore—NMRC/TCR/004-NUS/2008 and NMRC/TCR/012-NUHS/2014. Additional funding was provided by the Ministry of Education AcRF Tier 1 funding grant R581000130112 awarded to the corresponding/senior author and Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences—A*STAR.