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Psychometric Properties of the Autism Spectrum Quotient: Children’s Version (AQ-Child)

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Abstract

Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory and factor analysis (EFA) aimed to determine the optimum Autism Spectrum Quotient—Children (AQ-Child) model. Initial CFA of parent ratings of the AQ-Child for 404 clinic-referred children with ADHD, aged between 4 and 11 years, revealed mixed/moderate support for the implied AQ-Child five-factor model and the past statistically supported four-factor model (Auyeung et al., J Autism Dev Disord 38:1230–1240, 2008). Interestingly, EFA findings indicated most support for a four-factor model, with factors reflecting “mind-reading”, “social skills”, “attention to details”, and “imagination”. The items loading in these factors were different from those proposed originally for similar factors (Auyeung et al., J Autism Dev Disord 38:1230–1240, 2008). The factors in the model showed acceptable internal consistency-reliability and discriminant validity. Clinical and research implications are discussed.

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Acknowledgments

No source of funding has been used for the present study. It is acknowledged that the present study investigates the psychometric properties of the Autism Quotient children version using archival data of 404 children with ADHD examined at the Academic Child Psychiatry Unit (ACPU) of the Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, Australia. In that context, we are grateful to the employees of the unit that contributed to the data collection.

Author Contributions

RG contributed to the literature review, hypotheses formulation, data collection and analyses, and the structure and sequence of theoretical arguments. VS contributed to the literature review, hypotheses formulation, data collection and analyses, and the structure and sequence of theoretical arguments. AV contributed to the data collection and analyses.

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  1. Vasileios Stavropoulos

    Present address: , 391-393 Tooronga Road Hawthorn East, Melbourne, VIC, 3123, Australia

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Psychology, The Cairnmillar Institute, 105/1011 Toorak Road, Camberwell, Melbourne, VIC, 3124, Australia

    Rapson Gomez & Vasileios Stavropoulos

  2. Faculty of Philosophy, Department of Psychology, National and Kapodistrian, University of Athens, Athens, Greece

    Vasileios Stavropoulos

  3. The Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne & The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

    Alasdair Vance

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  1. Rapson Gomez
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Correspondence to Vasileios Stavropoulos.

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Gomez, R., Stavropoulos, V. & Vance, A. Psychometric Properties of the Autism Spectrum Quotient: Children’s Version (AQ-Child). J Autism Dev Disord 49, 468–480 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-018-3713-8

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