Purpose of present study
Although early language and IQ are significantly related to development in childhood and adolescence, most follow-up studies of individuals with autism only extend to early adulthood; little is known about later trajectories or the factors that influence these. The aim of this study was to assess cognitive and language change in a cohort of individuals first diagnosed as children and followed up to mid-later adulthood. The principal research questions explored were:
IQ:
What is the pattern of change in IQ from childhood to adulthood?
What are the main childhood correlates of adult IQ?
What are the factors most predictive of IQ decline over time?
Language:
Does language continue to improve from childhood to adulthood?
Are expressive skills in advance of receptive skills in adulthood?
What is the impact of early language regression on later outcome?