The Role Of Gender And Age In The Diagnosis Of Autism

Sometimes the question is asked, whether the diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder can be associated with someone’s age and gender? It most certainly can. As the most recent research has shown that there are certain differences between male and female symptoms that can differ not only because of their sex but also the age they are in.

The following text will explain what the differences would be and help them in determining if their loved one has autism but simply were not aware of the situation.

The Research

The research has shown that with a ratio of 3 males for one female are diagnosed with autism. That implies that the sex ratio is imbalanced, which is featured in Asperger’s and Kanner’s description of autism.

Research on ASD is done mostly on the male specimen. Such information has its consequences. Because it is male-based, the way we diagnose, measure, and conceptualize autism might be wrong. As it was stated at https://www.autismparentingmagazine.com/signs-of-autism-in-girls/, some research has previously taught that girls are more likely to be diagnosed later in life than boys. This way of perceiving may have dramatic and wrong implications when it comes to autistic females. Those that do not have any cognitive impairments are even more affected.

A problem occurs because the diagnosis tends to be less recognizable. It is crucial for autism to be recognized and identified in the early stages of childhood in order to provide the person with corresponding treatment.

Recognizing The Signs

As previously stated, it is harder to detect autism in girls and females in general. Although it is somewhat unclear why a promising approach to this matter would be to investigate the parent’s concerns. In most cases, parents represent the “key” that draws in the attention of professionals and to their child development. Studies have shown that parents’ observation can predict autism in their child, which is a reliable source.

Other studies on the other hand have investigated do the parents show the same concerns depending on the sex of the child and would it impact the final diagnosis. As an example, most parents’ concern was that their daughters with autism have more externalized behaviors like yelling or hitting someone in social surroundings, unlike the concerns of caregivers of boys. For them, it was reported that they have a more internalized way of behaving.

Child Expectations

To determine if someone has autism while a child is quite hard. A reason can be factors that peers of autistic children can influence parents’ perspectives on things. The way someone acts, for example, is not as social and does not like to be a part of any kind of group activity, can be connected to the situation where their classmates are rejecting them. There is research that came to the conclusion that these boys that like to keep things to themselves are more impacted by these rejections than the girls are.

To be precise, even though the boy is shy or has social anxiety, he will have a much harder time overcoming situations that are unpleasant and caused through relationships and conversation with other children. Across different studies, these differences are consistent. The reason behind it is attributed to the fact that boys with these qualities are “demolishing” gender norms and expectations that are being pushed upon society. It is interesting to say, that regardless of the sex, attention-seeking or aggression are equally likely to appear if it comes to rejection from other children.