Autism Assessment
Use when asked to administer, score, or explain an Autism Assessment — screening with the AQ-10 questionnaire plus sensory/developmental profiling — grounded in FormExamples/form-examples.
Autism spectrum screening using the AQ-10 questionnaire with sensory and developmental profiling.
Scoring
Instrument: AQ-10 (Autism Spectrum Quotient, 10-item). Range 0–10.
- 0–5 — below threshold.
- ≥ 6 — referral for diagnostic assessment recommended.
What it covers
Demographics; screening purpose and referral context; the ten AQ-10 screening questions; social communication and interaction patterns; repetitive behaviours and restricted interests; sensory profile (sensitivities and processing differences); developmental history (early milestones, childhood history); current support needs and accommodations; and family history of autism and related conditions.
Common pitfalls
- Treating the AQ-10 as diagnostic — it's a brief screener indicating who should be referred for full diagnostic assessment, not a diagnosis in itself.
- Skipping sensory profiling — sensory sensitivities are a core, often underweighted part of the autism presentation, and are easy to miss if the assessment focuses narrowly on the AQ-10 score.
- Assuming a single presentation — autism presents very differently across individuals (masking, differing support needs); a one-size-fits-all interpretation of the screener risks both false reassurance and unnecessary alarm.
Learn more
- FormExamples: autism-assessment for the full implementation, clinical references, and worked examples.
- Learning Disability Assessment for a related developmental assessment.