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Temperament in the First 2 Years of Life in Infants at High-Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorders

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Abstract

The current study investigated early temperament in 54 infants at familial high-risk of ASD and 50 controls. Parental report of temperament was assessed around 7, 14 and 24 months of age and diagnostic assessment was conducted at 3 years. The high-risk group showed reduced Surgency at 7 and 14 months and reduced Effortful Control at 14 and 24 months, compared to controls. High-risk infants later diagnosed with ASD were distinguished from controls by a temperament profile marked by increased Perceptual Sensitivity from the first year of life, and increased Negative Affect and reduced Cuddliness in the second year of life. Temperament may be an important construct for understanding the early infant development of ASD.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful for the enormous contributions BASIS families have made towards this study. The research reported here formed part of the thesis for Sally Clifford toward a Masters in Clinical Psychology, and was supported by The UK Medical Research Council (G0701484) to M. H. Johnson, the BASIS funding consortium led by Autistica (www.basisnetwork.org) and a Grant from Autism Speaks (1292). Further support for some of the authors is from COST action BM1004.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Psychology, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, Australia

    Sally M. Clifford

  2. Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre, School of Psychological Science, La Trobe University, Melbourne, VIC, 3086, Australia

    Kristelle Hudry

  3. Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, UK

    Mayada Elsabbagh & Mark H. Johnson

  4. Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada

    Mayada Elsabbagh

  5. Centre for Research in Autism and Education, Institute of Education, University of London, London, UK

    Tony Charman

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  1. Sally M. Clifford
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  2. Kristelle Hudry
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  5. Mark H. Johnson
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The BASIS Team

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Correspondence to Sally M. Clifford.

Additional information

The BASIS Team in alphabetical order: Simon Baron-Cohen, Rachael Bedford, Patrick Bolton, Susie Chandler, Janice Fernandes, Holly Garwood, Teodora Gliga, Leslie Tucker, Greg Pasco, Agnes Volein.

Appendix

Appendix

See Table 6.

Table 6 Temperament Scales, factor loadings (positive and negative) and definitions
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Clifford, S.M., Hudry, K., Elsabbagh, M. et al. Temperament in the First 2 Years of Life in Infants at High-Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorders. J Autism Dev Disord 43, 673–686 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-012-1612-y

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