The DOI matches its Crossref record; 38 of the 38 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Outcomes in adults with autism spectrum disorders: a historical perspective
Open accessAbstract
In this review, we examine the ways in which researchers have defined successful adult outcomes for individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) from the first systematic follow-up reports to the present day. The earliest outcome studies used vague and unreliable outcome criteria, and institutionalization was a common marker of poor outcomes. In the past decade, researchers have begun to standardize the measurement of adult outcomes with specific criteria based on friendships, employment, and living arrangements. Although nearly all of these studies have agreed that the majority of adults with ASD have poor outcomes, evolving concepts of what it means to be an adult could have an impact on outcomes measured. For example, some researchers have suggested that taking into account the person-environment fit could reveal a more optimistic picture of outcomes for these adults. Suggestions for future research are discussed.
Overview
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“Meta-analysis have suggested that across the lifespan, subjective QOL tends to be lower among individuals with ASD compared to typically-developing peers 228 , but is often more positive than indicators of objective QOL 223,229 .”
From Autism spectrum disorder (2020) · cites this paper as [229]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Citations
Cites
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
Williams, J. B. W., & First, M. B. (2013) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780199975839.013.104 · Cited by 109,845
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
(2012) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/springerreference_121117 · Cited by 20,772
Emerging adulthood: A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties.
Arnett, J. J. (2000) · American Psychologist · doi:10.1037/0003-066x.55.5.469 · Cited by 16,843 · cited 1×
“The Emerging Adulthood Theory (Arnett, 2000) posits that the transition period between adolescence and adulthood is characterized by identity exploration and individualism.”
(1943) · The Nervous child · Cited by 8,870
Autistic disturbances of affective contact.
Kanner, L. (1968) · PubMed · Cited by 2,282
Adult outcome for children with autism
Howlin, P., Goode, S., Hutton, J., & Rutter, M. (2004) · Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry · doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.2004.00215.x · Cited by 1,813 · cited 4×
“The rest of the studies in this category assessed overall outcomes with variations of the OOR scale (Eaves and Ho, 2008; Howlin et al., 2004).”
InfluentialConceptions of the Transition to Adulthood: Perspectives From Adolescence Through Midlife
Arnett, J. J. (2001) · Journal of Adult Development · doi:10.1023/a:1026450103225 · Cited by 881 · cited 1×
“In contrast to the traditional developmental tasks perspective, ‘emerging adults’ were more likely to say that being responsible for oneself, establishing a personal value system, relating to parents as adults, and becoming financially independent were markers of becoming an adult (Arnett, 2001).”
Billstedt, E., Gillberg, C., & Gillberg, C. (2005) · Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders · doi:10.1007/s10803-005-3302-5 · Cited by 783 · cited 10×
“These two scales, as in Billstedt et al. (2005), were more specific than Rutter et al.’s criteria, but still required some subjective interpretation. For example, on the Present Language Developmental Level (PLDL) scale they defined very good as being able to ‘communicate freely with a rich vocabulary’ and on the Pres…”
InfluentialCanadian Journal of Psychiatry
(1979) · The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1177/070674377902400508 · Cited by 762
Young Adult Outcome of Autism Spectrum Disorders
Eaves, L. C., & Ho, H. H. (2008) · Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders · doi:10.1007/s10803-007-0441-x · Cited by 683 · cited 10×
“Eaves and Ho (2008) assigned outcome categories to a sample of 48 young adults with ASDs in British Columbia.”
Influential
Research works printed but not linked: 2
- Kanner L, 1943, Nervous Child, 2, 217
- Shattuck P, Canadian Journal of Psychiatry
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 201–266 of 266
Kanai, C., Toth, G., Itahashi, T., Hashimoto, R., & Kato, N. (2016) · Autism and child psychopathology series · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-27171-2_20 · Cited by 2
Standardizing diagnostic assessment of Autism Spectrum Disorder : assets and challenges
Zander, E. (2015) · Figshare · Cited by 2
Sedgewick, F. (2018) · UCL Discovery (University College London) · Cited by 2
Hwang, Y. I., Foley, K., & Trollor, J. N. (2016) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-981-287-080-3_305-1 · Cited by 2
Lin, Y.-N., Zhu, H.-M., & Lian, F.-X. (2018) · Advances in Psychological Science · doi:10.3724/sp.j.1042.2018.01465 · Cited by 1
Qualls, L. R., Hartmann, K., Paulson, J. F., & Wells, N. K. (2021) · Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders · doi:10.1007/s10803-021-05064-y · Cited by 1
Bukszpan, A. R., Piazza, J. L., Javed, A., Sato, S. K., & Boone, V. (2022) · Autism and child psychopathology series · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-98507-3_24 · Cited by 1
Chen, V. C., Huang, Y., Chen, Y., Dewey, M. E., Hung, T., & Wu, S. (2026) · Autism Research · doi:10.1002/aur.70302 · Cited by 3
Kirby, A. V., Bilder, D. A., Nicholls, C., McMahon, W. M., & Bakian, A. V. (2024) · Autism in Adulthood · doi:10.1089/aut.2024.0183 · Cited by 1
Brief report: Social relationships among autistic young adults with varying cognitive abilities
Gohari, D., Park, J., Schiltz, H. K., & Lord, C. (2024) · Research in Autism · doi:10.1016/j.rasd.2024.102524 · Cited by 1
Grieve, C. M., Roest, A. M., White, S. W., Ganzevoort, C. O. W., Smit, R. W. H., Bekius, J., van Balkom, I. D. C., & Greaves‐Lord, K. (2026) · Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders · doi:10.1007/s40489-026-00580-y · Cited by 1
Myles, B. S., & Rogers, J. (2016) · IGI Global eBooks · doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-0034-6.ch079 · Cited by 1
Stansfield, A. J., Kam, A., Baddams, T., Woodrow, B., Roberts, E., Patel, B., & Davidson, C. J. (2017) · Advances in Autism · doi:10.1108/aia-03-2016-0008 · Cited by 1
“Outcome measurement in adult autism We are indebted to Henninger and Taylor (2013) for their excellent historical review of outcomes in adults with autism spectrum disorders.”
MethodRibu, K. (2018) · Norsk IKT-konferanse for forskning og utdanning · Cited by 1
The Benefits of Employing Individuals with Autism
Hurley-Hanson, A. E., Giannantonio, C. M., & Griffiths, A. J. (2019) · Palgrave explorations in workplace stigma · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-29049-8_12 · Cited by 1
London, E., & Yoo, J. H. (2021) · Brain Sciences · doi:10.3390/brainsci11081073 · Cited by 1
Myles, B. S., & Rogers, J. (2014) · Advances in medical technologies and clinical practice book series · doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-5792-2.ch002 · Cited by 1
Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT): Research Findings Over 30 Years
Koegel, L. K., Ponder, E., Nordlund, K. S., & Koegel, B. L. (2022) · Autism and child psychopathology series · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-96478-8_12 · Cited by 1
Involvement of Autistic Adults in Recreational Activities
Préfontaine, I., Normand, C. L., Berbari, J., Fecteau, S.-M., Ruel, J., Couture, M. M., & ACAA TEAM (2024) · Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders · doi:10.1007/s10803-024-06521-0 · Cited by 2
“We describe the involvement of autistic persons in RA but, without the participants’ appraisal, we cannot judge the quality of their participation and enjoyment (Henninger & Taylor, 2013).”
Teaching Vocational Gardening Skills To An Adolescent With Severe Autism
Garcia, S. K. (2015) · Digital Commons - CSUMB (California State University, Monterey Bay) · Cited by 1
Using Video Modeling to Teach Vocational Skills to Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Schoenherr, K. (2018) · IRL - University of Missouri, St. Louis (University of Missouri–St. Louis) · Cited by 1
Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors for autistic spectrum disorders
Cox, G., Williams, K. J., Woon, J. M., Haslam, R., & Ure, A. M. (2021) · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · doi:10.1002/14651858.cd013851 · Cited by 1
Factors Influencing Participation Outcomes of Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Kirby, A. V. (2015) · Carolina Digital Repository (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) · doi:10.17615/mder-ke30 · Cited by 1
Adaptive Behavior Predicting Postschool Outcomes
Dell’Armo, K. (2019) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-6435-8_102393-1 · Cited by 1
Environment and participation of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder
Krieger, B. (2022) · Research Publications (Maastricht University) · doi:10.26481/dis.20220913bk · Cited by 1
Toward a Better Understanding and Improved Validity of Autism Symptom Measures Across the Lifespan.
Bal, V. H. (2014) · Deep Blue (University of Michigan)
The Relationship of Employment and Social Deficits in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Thomas, S. P. (2019) · Carolina Digital Repository (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) · doi:10.17615/pny7-ad18
Autistic Men in the Workplace: An Interpretative Phenomenological Study
Boyce, L. D. (2016) · CLOK (University of Central Lancashire)
Autism spectrum disorder: forensic aspects and sentencing considerations
Robertson, C. E. (2017) · Figshare
Teaching Science to Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder
McKissick, B. R. (2017) · Autism and child psychopathology series · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-69983-7_6
Réhabilitation psychosociale pour les personnes avec syndrome d'Asperger
Dubreucq, J., Leignier, S., Perier, C.-C., & Fulachier, D. (2018) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-2-294-75915-4.00042-6
Dinecola, C. M. (2018) · doi:10.31390/gradschool_dissertations.4584
“Additionally, research has found that having received early intervention during young childhood predicts better outcomes for adults with ASD (Henninger & Taylor, 2013).”
BackgroundChurch, H. L. (2019) · Scholarship@Western (Western University)
Woodbury‐Smith, M., & Tran, F. (2017) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-6435-8_102115-1
Fernandez, S. (2020) · UWA Profiles and Research Repository (UWA) · doi:10.26182/5e4f48bb71751
“…who are able to function with some degree of independence, a majority experience language difficulties but often excel in areas of visual arts, architecture and route memory (Frith & Happé 1994; Grandin, 2009; Henninger & Taylor, 2013; Howlin, Savage, Moss, Tempier, & Rutter, 2014; Selfe, 2011).”
BackgroundМаксимова, И. В., Gorina, Y. V., Дятловский, В. В., Имамалиева, А. Н., Lopatina, O. L., & Пичугина, Ю. А. (2020) · Сибирский вестник психиатрии и наркологии · doi:10.26617/1810-3111-2020-1(106)-49-55
Employment of Adults with ASD: A Motivational Perspective
Goldfarb, Y., Gal, E., & Golan, O. (2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-91280-6_102435
Woodbury‐Smith, M., & Tran, F. (2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-91280-6_102115
Adaptive Behavior Predicting Postschool Outcomes
Dell’Armo, K. (2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-91280-6_102393
Employment of Adults with ASD: A Motivational Perspective
Goldfarb, Y., Gal, E., & Golan, O. (2019) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-6435-8_102435-1
Integration of Psychopharmacology and Behavior Analysis for Autism Spectrum Disorder
Yoo, J. H., & London, E. (2022) · Autism and child psychopathology series · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-88538-0_54
Equity in education for autistic students
Petersson‐Bloom, L. (2022) · doi:10.24834/isbn.9789178773176 · Cited by 4
Scoping Review of the Factors Influencing Compatibility of Autistic Roommates
Bailey, A., & Mullins, L. E. (2022) · Current Developmental Disorders Reports · doi:10.1007/s40474-022-00264-2
Steele, K., & Ahrentzen, S. B. (2015) · Policy Press eBooks · doi:10.51952/9781447307983.bm001
العثيم, س. (2022) · مجلة التربية الخاصة · doi:10.21608/mtkh.2022.283494
Életvégi döntések nehézségei intellektuális képességzavar és autizmus spektrum zavarok esetén
Trixler, B., & Pusztafalvi, H. (2023) · Esély - Társadalom- és szociálpolitikai folyóirat · doi:10.48007/esely.2023.1.2
Radley, K. C., & Dart, E. H. (2023) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-42601-8_1
Marini, S., D’Agostino, L., Ciamarra, C., Berardis, D. D., & Gentile, A. (2024) · Advances in Mental Health and Intellectual Disabilities · doi:10.1108/amhid-06-2023-0021
Babatope, T. T., Pagán, A. F., McCool, C. W., Parks, N. R., Koch, N., Welch, L., & Daghighi, P. (2025) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781009334730.030
College and Career Readiness of Students with Autism
Stello, C. N. (2019) · doi:10.12794/metadc1505143
Differentiation of autistic adults’ perceptions of research by gender: a mixed methods exploration
Wolpe, S., Tien, I. S., Lee, N., & Sozeri, S. (2025) · Advances in Autism · doi:10.1108/aia-03-2024-0021
Hawayek-Carrera, J. (2025) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-86114-7_4
Smith DaWalt, L., Hickey, E., Hudock, R. L., Esler, A., & Mailick, M. R. (2021) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.16778496
Smith DaWalt, L., Hickey, E., Hudock, R. L., Esler, A., & Mailick, M. R. (2021) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.16778493
The potential for successful autistic ageing: Proposing a lifespan developmental psychology approach
Ommensen, B., Attwood, T., Pachana, N. A., & Sofronoff, K. (2026) · Autism · doi:10.1177/13623613261418468
“This is highly relevant to autism research, where historically there has been proportionately less investigation of adulthood relative to the large scope of work focused on the early years (Henninger & Taylor, 2013; Howlin, 2021).”
Rodriguez-Romero, D., Rossi, C. G., & Magallón, S. (2025) · Siglo Cero: Revista Española sobre Discapacidad Intelectual · doi:10.14201/scero.32298
“Unwritten Rules are Everywhere”: Autistic Adults’ Social Experiences in the Transition to Adulthood
Wolpe, S., & Tien, I. S. (2026) · International Journal of Disability Development and Education · doi:10.1080/1034912x.2026.2667971
Kanai, C., Toth, G., & Doi, H. (2026) · Autism and child psychopathology series · doi:10.1007/978-3-032-11802-8_9
Identification, Assessment, and Diagnosis of Autism in Adulthood
Rabba, A. S., Taylor, L., Lawson, W. B., & Magiati, I. (2026) · Autism and child psychopathology series · doi:10.1007/978-3-032-11802-8_6
Predictors of job satisfaction of autistic employees
D’Entremont, B. (2026) · Research in Neurodiversity · doi:10.1016/j.rin.2026.100038
“Working towards acceptance”: Autistic adults’ reflections on finding a place in the world
Wolpe, S., Tien, N. S., & Cooper, K. (2026) · Research in Neurodiversity · doi:10.1016/j.rin.2026.100074
WHITE, S. W., Ionadi, A., Friedman, N. R., & MAZEFSKY, C. A. (2026) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9781394389933.ch8
Active Engagement: Development of Cooking Skills for Young Adults with Autism
Bailey‐Goldschmidt, J. (2015) · University Libraries (University of Maryland) · doi:10.13016/m2rw4z
Metadata
- Authors
- Henninger, N. A., & Taylor, J. L.
- Affiliations
- Vanderbilt University (US)
- Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital (US)
- ORCID
- Taylor, Julie Lounds
- Venue
- Autism
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2012-08-21
- Volume
- 17
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 103-116
- ISSN
- 1362-3613 (ISSN-L)
- 1461-7005
- PMC
- PMC3769945
- OpenAlex
- W2109872026
- Cited by
- 267
- References
- 38
- Citations by year
- 2026: 10 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 11 · 2022: 19 · 2021: 29 · 2020: 27 · 2019: 31 · 2018: 22 · 2017: 23 · 2016: 18 · 2015: 23 · 2014: 18 · 2013: 10
- FWCI
- 8.34
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Autism (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute of Mental Health (K01MH092598)
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (P30HD015052, P30 HD-15052)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
- Social Sciences › Education › Disability Education and Employment
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Family and Disability Support Research
- Keywords
- autism spectrum disorder, adult outcomes, outcome measurement, institutionalization, employment, friendship, living arrangements, person-environment fit
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Child, Child Development Disorders, Pervasive, Employment, Humans, Outcome Assessment, Health Care, Friends, History, 20th Century, History, 21st Century, Independent Living
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
