Differential Diagnosis of Autism and Asperger's Syndrome

Differential diagnosis through systematic observation has been regarded an effective tool to overcome the problems of misdiagnosing and overlapping between autism and Asperger. The author used the systematic observation method (time sampling) in the differential diagnosis of the behavioral characteristics of autistic and Asperger cases between 5-7 years old. The sample consisted of 18 children who were divided into 9 autistic children and 9 Asperger children. The author developed an observation checklist for the behavioral characteristics which contained four dimensions (stereotypic motor responses – social responses – linguistic responses – emotional responses – and the total score). The items of the checklist were chosen according the DSM-IV criteria of diagnosing both autism and Asperger. Results asserted the efficacy of systematic observation through time sampling method in discriminating autistic and Asperger children. The results showed many diagnostic criteria that may be used to differentiate between autistic and Asperger children. Conclusion: caution must be taken in diagnosing autistic and Asperger cases due to the overlapping of these both disabilities. Many behavioral characteristics that may be used to discriminate between these two disabilities had been pointed out