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Cited by 88Autism Spectrum Disorder ResearchEducation, Achievement, and GiftednessEducational and Psychological Assessments

Profoundly Gifted Girls and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Psychometric Case Study Comparison

Assouline, Susan G., Nicpon, Megan Foley, Doobay, Alissa·2009·Gifted Child Quarterly
DOI 10.1177/0016986208330565
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Abstract

A case study of the psychometric characteristics of two profoundly gifted girls, one with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and the other without ASD, is used to describe the nuances and subtleties most relevant in understanding the relationship between extreme giftedness and social difficulties. Through the presentation of the results from psychoeducational and psychosocial assessments, we demonstrate how data from a comprehensive evaluation can distinguish between the manifestation of extreme giftedness and concomitant social impairment indicative of ASD. Comparison of the assessment results highlights the relevance of cognitive and achievement information as well as the need for specific measures to diagnosis ASD. The girls demonstrated virtually identically superior cognitive and achievement performances. However, an in-depth analysis of additional measures, especially those specific to ASD, indicates that information about adaptive behavior and executive functioning can reveal important distinctions that are helpful in understanding the need for unique interventions specific to ASD. Putting the Research to Use: Previous literature reviews about profoundly gifted students with social impairments have cautioned against misdiagnosis (Webb et al., 2005) of psychological disorders. These psychologists posit that social impairments are primarily the result of social-emotional vulnerability associated with very high IQs. Further, they argue that concomitant social difficulties are characteristics of giftedness, not indicators of a disability. We compared two profoundly gifted girls, each with social difficulties, who are virtually identical in their cognitive and achievement profiles. Our comparison reveal the importance of basing conclusions about social impairments on comprehensive assessments that use measures uniquely designed to distinguish between “difficulty” and “disability.” We demonstrate that although “misdiagnosis” is a possibility with profoundly gifted children, the greater risk is “missed” diagnosis, which precludes the opportunity for appropriate intervention. In today's atmosphere of “anti-testing” it is important to advocate for a comprehensive assessment with the necessary measures to understand the degree of social impairment.

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Crossref · 10.1177/0016986208330565

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  • ADHD, ASD, and learning disabilities are the three diagnoses most often reported in comorbidity with giftedness.

    “According to clinical records, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and learning disabilities are the three diagnoses most often reported in comorbidity with giftedness [9, 10].”

    From Behavioral and Socio-Emotional Disorders in Intellectual Giftedness: A Systematic Review (2024) · cites this paper as [9]

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Authors
Assouline, S. G., Nicpon, M. F., & Doobay, A.
Affiliations
  • University of Iowa (US)
  • The University of Iowa
Corresponding author
Assouline, Susan G.
ORCID
Assouline, Susan G.
Venue
Gifted Child Quarterly
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
2009-04
Volume
53
Issue
2
Pages
89-105
ISSN
  • 0016-9862 (ISSN-L)
  • 1934-9041
DOI
10.1177/0016986208330565
OpenAlex
W1986533148
Cited by
88
References
43
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 12 · 2015: 14 · 2014: 6 · 2013: 2 · 2012: 1
FWCI
2.58
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license (tdm)
Locations
Gifted Child Quarterly (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Education, Achievement, and Giftedness
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Educational and Psychological Assessments
Keywords
autism spectrum disorder, social dysfunction, misdiagnosis, missed diagnosis, adaptive behavior, executive function, psychometric assessment, gifted girls, differential diagnosis

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