Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) were once considered lifelong disorders, but a small body of research indicates children with ASDs are capable of gaining skills, such that they no longer meet diagnostic criteria for any ASD. These individuals are considered to have achieved an optimal outcome. This study examined communication and social functioning in a group of adolescents with a history of autism spectrum disorders who have achieved optimal outcomes. Thirty-two such individuals between the ages of eight and twenty-one were matched on age, sex, and nonverbal IQ to 33 individuals with high-functioning autism and 25 typically developing adolescents. The groups were compared on measures of autism symptomatology, adaptive functioning, and pragmatic language. Results indicated that the optimal outcome adolescents were functioning quite well in both the communication and social domains. However, some exhibited subtle residual social deficits, including restricted of a range of directed facial expressions, limited insight in social relationships, and poorer quality of rapport, as compared to the typically developing individuals. Importantly, the optimal outcome adolescents performed better than the adolescents with high-functioning autism on all areas assessed. Thus, the optimal outcome individuals were not experiencing any impairing communication or social deficits.
","abstract_html":"<p>Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) were once considered lifelong disorders, but a small body of research indicates children with ASDs are capable of gaining skills, such that they no longer meet diagnostic criteria for any ASD. These individuals are considered to have achieved an optimal outcome. This study examined communication and social functioning in a group of adolescents with a history of autism spectrum disorders who have achieved optimal outcomes. Thirty-two such individuals between the ages of eight and twenty-one were matched on age, sex, and nonverbal IQ to 33 individuals with high-functioning autism and 25 typically developing adolescents. The groups were compared on measures of autism symptomatology, adaptive functioning, and pragmatic language. Results indicated that the optimal outcome adolescents were functioning quite well in both the communication and social domains. However, some exhibited subtle residual social deficits, including restricted of a range of directed facial expressions, limited insight in social relationships, and poorer quality of rapport, as compared to the typically developing individuals. Importantly, the optimal outcome adolescents performed better than the adolescents with high-functioning autism on all areas assessed. Thus, the optimal outcome individuals were not experiencing any impairing communication or social deficits.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Orinstein, Alyssa J"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Marianne Barton, Michael Stevens","Deborah Fein"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2011,"date_issued":"2011-09-20T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2011-09-20T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:31:45Z","subjects":["High-functioning autism","Outcome","Adaptive behavior","Optimal outcome","Language","Symptoms"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.lib.uconn.edu/gs_theses/179","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Marianne Barton, Michael Stevens","Deborah Fein"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Orinstein, Alyssa J"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2011-09-03T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["High-functioning autism","Outcome","Adaptive behavior","Optimal outcome","Language","Symptoms"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.lib.uconn.edu/gs_theses/179"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) were once considered lifelong disorders, but a small body of research indicates children with ASDs are capable of gaining skills, such that they no longer meet diagnostic criteria for any ASD. These individuals are considered to have achieved an optimal outcome. This study examined communication and social functioning in a group of adolescents with a history of autism spectrum disorders who have achieved optimal outcomes. Thirty-two such individuals between the ages of eight and twenty-one were matched on age, sex, and nonverbal IQ to 33 individuals with high-functioning autism and 25 typically developing adolescents. The groups were compared on measures of autism symptomatology, adaptive functioning, and pragmatic language. Results indicated that the optimal outcome adolescents were functioning quite well in both the communication and social domains. However, some exhibited subtle residual social deficits, including restricted of a range of directed facial expressions, limited insight in social relationships, and poorer quality of rapport, as compared to the typically developing individuals. Importantly, the optimal outcome adolescents performed better than the adolescents with high-functioning autism on all areas assessed. Thus, the optimal outcome individuals were not experiencing any impairing communication or social deficits.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Residual Communication and Social Deficits in Individuals with a History of Autism Spectrum Disorders Who Achieved Optimal Outcomes"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Marianne Barton, Michael Stevens","Deborah Fein"],"dc:creator":["Orinstein, Alyssa J"],"dc:date.available":["2011-09-03T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) were once considered lifelong disorders, but a small body of research indicates children with ASDs are capable of gaining skills, such that they no longer meet diagnostic criteria for any ASD. These individuals are considered to have achieved an optimal outcome. This study examined communication and social functioning in a group of adolescents with a history of autism spectrum disorders who have achieved optimal outcomes. Thirty-two such individuals between the ages of eight and twenty-one were matched on age, sex, and nonverbal IQ to 33 individuals with high-functioning autism and 25 typically developing adolescents. The groups were compared on measures of autism symptomatology, adaptive functioning, and pragmatic language. Results indicated that the optimal outcome adolescents were functioning quite well in both the communication and social domains. However, some exhibited subtle residual social deficits, including restricted of a range of directed facial expressions, limited insight in social relationships, and poorer quality of rapport, as compared to the typically developing individuals. Importantly, the optimal outcome adolescents performed better than the adolescents with high-functioning autism on all areas assessed. Thus, the optimal outcome individuals were not experiencing any impairing communication or social deficits.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.lib.uconn.edu/gs_theses/179"],"dc:subject":["High-functioning autism","Outcome","Adaptive behavior","Optimal outcome","Language","Symptoms"],"dc:title":["Residual Communication and Social Deficits in Individuals with a History of Autism Spectrum Disorders Who Achieved Optimal Outcomes"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Psychology"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:31:45Z"}