Differentiating low- and high-functioning children with autism spectrum disorder, children with intellectual disability, and typically developing children in a Chinese population

Background There is a dearth of research or inconsistency in findings of behaviours among children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and children with intellectual disability (ID) as well as children who are typically developing (TD). This study compared 7 behavioural domains of 96 behaviours among Chinese children. Method There were 803 children, including 426 children with low-functioning ASD (LFASD), 193 children with high-functioning ASD (HFASD), 128 children with ID, and 56 TD children. Ages ranged from 36 to 84 months. Each individual was administered the Chinese Autism Diagnostic Scale by a group of Chinese professionals. Results All 7 domains were found to be more impaired for the children with ASD than the other groups. Three domains contained the most distinctive behaviours: Play behaviours, Social-Interactive behaviours, and Receptive Language behaviours. The Expressive Language domain was different for the LFASD group versus the group with ID. Conclusion Children with ASD differed from children without ASD by several specific behaviours. These behaviours also differentiated performances by the children with HFASD and LFASD.