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A longitudinal examination of 10-year change in vocational and educational activities for adults with autism spectrum disorders.

ABSTRACT: The transition from adolescence to adulthood has been shown to be a time of amplified risk for individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). It is unknown, however, whether problems in educational attainment and employment in the years after high school exit represent momentary perturbations in development or a turning point with long-lasting effects throughout adulthood. The present study addressed this question by examining 10-year trajectories of vocational and educational activities for adults with ASD, as well as the personal characteristics and environmental resources that predicted these activities. Participants were 161 adults with ASD (ages 18-52 years at the start of the study; M = 30.9) who were part of a larger longitudinal study. Data were collected at 6 time points over a 10-year period. Results indicated significant declines in the level of independence and engagement in vocational/educational activities over the study period, particularly for women. Greater independence in vocational activities was found for those with more independence in activities of daily living. After controlling for personal characteristics, receipt of more services was marginally related to greater improvement in vocational independence.

SUBMITTER: Taylor JL

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3951267 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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A longitudinal examination of 10-year change in vocational and educational activities for adults with autism spectrum disorders.

Taylor Julie Lounds JL Mailick Marsha R MR

Developmental psychology 20130902 3

The transition from adolescence to adulthood has been shown to be a time of amplified risk for individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). It is unknown, however, whether problems in educational attainment and employment in the years after high school exit represent momentary perturbations in development or a turning point with long-lasting effects throughout adulthood. The present study addressed this question by examining 10-year trajectories of vocational and educational activities for ...[more]

PMID: 24001150

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Project description:Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by delayed/abnormal language development, deficits in social interaction, repetitive behaviors and restricted interests. The heterogeneity in clinical presentation of ASD, likely due to different etiologies, complicates genetic/biological analyses of these disorders. DNA microarray analyses were conducted on 116 lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCL) from individuals with idiopathic autism who are divided into 3 phenotypic subgroups according to severity scores from the commonly used Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised questionnaire and age-matched, nonautistic controls. Statistical analyses of gene expression data from control LCL against that of LCL from ASD probands identify genes for which expression levels are either quantitatively or qualitatively associated with phenotypic severity. Comparison of the significant differentially expressed genes from each subgroup relative to the control group reveals differentially expressed genes unique to each subgroup as well as genes in common across subgroups. Among the findings unique to the most severely affected ASD group are genes that regulate circadian rhythm, which has been shown to have multiple effects on neurological as well as metabolic functions commonly dysregulated in autism. Among the genes common to all 3 subgroups of ASD are 5 novel genes which appear to associate with androgen sensitivity, which may underlie the strong 4:1 bias towards affected males. Gene expression profiling of 116 LCL from autistic (87) and nonautistic (29) individuals were obtained using a custom-printed DNA microarray containing 39,936 elements (TIGR 40K Human array, GPL3427) and a reference design in which each sample was compared to the Stratagene Universal Human RNA standard. The 87 autistic samples were divided into phenotypic subgroups (language, mild, savant) on the basis of cluster analyses of scores from an autism diagnostic questionnaire, the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised instrument. Differentially expressed genes were determined for all autistic vs. control groups, as well as for each of 3 phenotypic ASD groups and controls.

Dataset Information

A longitudinal examination of 10-year change in vocational and educational activities for adults with autism spectrum disorders.

Publications

A longitudinal examination of 10-year change in vocational and educational activities for adults with autism spectrum disorders.

Similar Datasets

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