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Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders
Published in: Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders 1/2018

Open Access 01-12-2018 | Research

Classifying and characterizing the development of adaptive behavior in a naturalistic longitudinal study of young children with autism

Authors: Cristan Farmer, Lauren Swineford, Susan E. Swedo, Audrey Thurm

Published in: Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders | Issue 1/2018

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Abstract

Background

Adaptive behavior, or the ability to function independently in ones’ environment, is a key phenotypic construct in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Few studies of the development of adaptive behavior during preschool to school-age are available, though existing data demonstrate that the degree of ability and impairment associated with ASD, and how it manifests over time, is heterogeneous. Growth mixture models are a statistical technique that can help parse this heterogeneity in trajectories.

Methods

Data from an accelerated longitudinal natural history study (n = 105 children with ASD) were subjected to growth mixture model analysis. Children were assessed up to four times between the ages of 3 to 7.99 years.

Results

The best fitting model comprised two classes of trajectory on the Adaptive Behavior Composite score of the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale, Second Edition—a low and decreasing trajectory (73% of the sample) and a moderate and stable class (27%).

Conclusions

These results partially replicate the classes observed in a previous study of a similarly characterized sample, suggesting that developmental trajectory may indeed serve as a phenotype. Further, the ability to predict which trajectory a child is likely to follow will be useful in planning for clinical trials.
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Metadata
Title
Classifying and characterizing the development of adaptive behavior in a naturalistic longitudinal study of young children with autism
Authors
Cristan Farmer
Lauren Swineford
Susan E. Swedo
Audrey Thurm
Publication date
01-12-2018
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders / Issue 1/2018
Print ISSN: 1866-1947
Electronic ISSN: 1866-1955
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s11689-017-9222-9

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