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Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, Vol. 35, No. 1, February 2005 ( 2005)Diagnostic Assessment of Aspergers Disorder: A Review
of Five Third-Party Rating ScalesJonathan M. Campbell1Five rating scales for screening and detection of Aspergers Disorder, three commercially
available and two research instruments, are evaluated with reference to psychometric criteria
outlined by Bracken in 1987 (Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 4, 313). Reliability and
validity data reported in examiners manuals or published reports are reviewed. The scales
included in the review are the Asperger Syndrome Diagnostic Scale (ASDS), Autism Spectrum
Screening Questionnaire (ASSQ), Childhood Asperger Syndrome Test (CAST), Gilliam
Aspergers Disorder Scale (GADS), and Krug Aspergers Disorder Index (KADI). All
published rating scales demonstrated signicant weaknesses, particularly in the use of
questionable normative samples. Among the published instruments, the KADI appears to be
the most sound in terms of reliability and validity. The research instruments present
incomplete psychometric data to date, but hold promise as clinical instruments.KEY WORDS: Aspergers Disorder; assessment; validity; rating scales.Aspergers Disorder (AD) is a developmental
disorder characterized by signicant impairments in
social communication and restricted patterns of
interest or behaviors in the presence of generally
age-appropriate language acquisition and cognitive
functioning (Klin, Volkmar, & Sparrow, 2000). AD
was rst described in a series of case studies by
Hans Asperger (Asperger, 1944) and reintroduced with Lorna Wings (1981) description of a
series of clinical cases. Interest in AD grew after
Wings clinical account and has culminated in
the inclusion of AD into widely used diagnostic
classication systems, such as the Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth
Edition (DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994), its revision (DSM-IV-TR; American
Psychiatric Association, 2000), and the International Classication of Diseases and Related Health
Problems, Tenth Edition (ICD-10; World Health
Organization, 1992). Despite ongoing controversy
regarding the validity of AD as separate from
autism, particularly high functioning autism (e.g.,
Campbell & Morgan, 1998; Mayes, Calhoun, &
Crites, 2001), a number of measures have been
developed to detect and screen for AD (Howlin,
2000).The purpose of the present review is to evaluate third-party rating scales currently available for
use in assisting in the detection and evaluation of
individuals with AD. The author describes each
rating scale including its format, length, and
intended purposes. The description is followed by...