by James E. Gilliam, EdD
Purpose: Identify individuals with unique behavioural problems who may have Asperger's disorder
Age: 3 through to 22 years
Admin: Individual
Time: 5-10 minutes
Qualification Level: B
Easily completed by a parent and professional who knows the child, the GADS provides documentation about the essential behaviour characteristics of Asperger's disorder necessary for diagnosis. It can be used with confidence in the assessment process to document behavioural progress, to target goals for IEPs, and for research purposes.
The GADS is a norm referenced test designed to evaluate individuals with unique behavioural problems who may have Asperger's Disorder. Based on the most current and relevant definitions and diagnostic criteria of Asperger's Disorder, the GADS is useful for contributing valuable information toward the identification of individuals who have this disorder. Easily completed by a parent and professional who knows the individual, the GADS provides documentation about the essential behaviour characteristics of Asperger's Disorder necessary for diagnosis. It can be used in the assessment process to document behavioural progress, to target goals for IEPs, and for research purposes. The validity of the GADS was demonstrated by confirming that (a) the items of the test are directly related to the definitions of Asperger's Disorder, (b) the subscales are strongly related to each other and the overall diagnosis of Asperger's Disorder, and (c) the GADS scores discriminate persons with Asperger's Disorder from persons with autism and other behavioural disorders.
The GADS has the following characteristics:
- Thirty-two clearly stated items divided into four subscales describe specific, observable, and measurable behaviours.
- Eight additional items are included for parents to contribute data about their child's development during the first 3 years of life.
- Items are based on the most current definitions of Asperger's Disorder.
- The test was normed on 371 representative individuals with Asperger's Disorder (ages 3-22 years) from 27 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, and Australia.
- Behaviours are rated using objective, frequency-based ratings.
- Standard scores and percentiles are provided.
- A table is provided for determining the likelihood that an individual has Asperger's Disorder.
- A list of books, journals, media, Internet sites, and organisations concerned about Asperger's Disorder are provided to give teachers, parents, and others information about Asperger's Disorder.
