The Cambridge Face Memory Test (CFMT) and Cambridge Face Perception Test (CFPT) have provided the first theoretically strong clinical tests for prosopagnosia based on novel rather than famous faces. Here, we assess the extent to which norms for these tasks must take into account ageing, sex, and testing country. Data were from Australians aged 18 to 88 years (N = 240 for CFMT; 128 for CFPT) and young adult Israelis (N = 49 for CFMT). Participants were unselected for face recognition ability; most were university educated. The diagnosis cut-off for prosopagnosia (2 SDs poorer than mean) was affected by age, participant-stimulus ethnic match (within Caucasians), and sex for middle-aged and older adults on the CFPT. We also report internal reliability, correlation between face memory and face perception, correlations with intelligence-related measures, correlation with self-report, distribution shape for the CFMT, and prevalence of developmental prosopagnosia.

Research highlights► Congenital prosopagnosics show weak holistic coding of expression and identity. ► Normal expression recognition can result from compensatory strategies. ► There may be a common stage of holistic coding for expression and identity. ► Holistic coding of identity is functionally involved in face identification ability.

Sensory processing abnormalities are common in autism spectrum disorders (ASD), and now form part of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5th Edition (DSM-5) diagnostic criteria, but it is unclear whether they characterize the ‘broader phenotype’ of the disorder. We recruited adults (n = 772) with and without an ASD and administered the Autism Quotient (AQ) along with the Adult/Adolescent Sensory Profile (AASP), the Cardiff Anomalous Perceptions Scale (CAPS), and the Glasgow Sensory Questionnaire (GSQ), all questionnaire measures of abnormal sensory responsivity. Autism traits were significantly correlated with scores on all three sensory scales (AQ/GSQ r = 0.478; AQ/AASP r = 0.344; AQ/CAPS r = 0.333; all p < 0.001). This relationship was linear across the whole range of AQ scores and was true both in those with, and without, an ASD diagnosis. It survived correction for anxiety trait scores, and other potential confounds such as mental illness and migraine.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by pervasive difficulties since early childhood across reciprocal social communication and restricted, repetitive interests and behaviors. Although early ASD research focused primarily on children, there is increasing recognition that ASD is a lifelong neurodevelopmental disorder. However, although health and education services for children with ASD are relatively well established, service provision for adults with ASD is in its infancy. There is a lack of health services research for adults with ASD, including identification of comorbid health difficulties, rigorous treatment trials (pharmacological and psychological), development of new pharmacotherapies, investigation of transition and aging across the lifespan, and consideration of sex differences and the views of people with ASD. This article reviews available evidence regarding the etiology, legislation, diagnosis, management, and service provision for adults with ASD and considers what is needed to support adults with ASD as they age. We conclude that health services research for adults with ASD is urgently warranted. In particular, research is required to better understand the needs of adults with ASD, including health, aging, service development, transition, treatment options across the lifespan, sex, and the views of people with ASD. Additionally, the outcomes of recent international legislative efforts to raise awareness of ASD and service provision for adults with ASD are to be determined. Future research is required to identify high-quality, evidence-based, and cost-effective models of care. Furthermore, future health services research is also required at the beginning and end of adulthood, including improved transition from youth to adult health care and increased understanding of aging and health in older adults with ASD.

BackgroundMany adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) remain undiagnosed. Specialist assessment clinics enable the detection of these cases, but such services are often overstretched. It has been proposed that unnecessary referrals to these services could be reduced by prioritizing individuals who score highly on the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ), a self-report questionnaire measure of autistic traits. However, the ability of the AQ to predict who will go on to receive a diagnosis of ASD in adults is unclear.MethodWe studied 476 adults, seen consecutively at a national ASD diagnostic referral service for suspected ASD. We tested AQ scores as predictors of ASD diagnosis made by expert clinicians according to International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10 criteria, informed by the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-Generic (ADOS-G) and Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) assessments.ResultsOf the participants, 73% received a clinical diagnosis of ASD. Self-report AQ scores did not significantly predict receipt of a diagnosis. While AQ scores provided high sensitivity of 0.77 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.72–0.82] and positive predictive value of 0.76 (95% CI 0.70–0.80), the specificity of 0.29 (95% CI 0.20–0.38) and negative predictive value of 0.36 (95% CI 0.22–0.40) were low. Thus, 64% of those who scored below the AQ cut-off were ‘false negatives’ who did in fact have ASD. Co-morbidity data revealed that generalized anxiety disorder may ‘mimic’ ASD and inflate AQ scores, leading to false positives.ConclusionsThe AQ's utility for screening referrals was limited in this sample. Recommendations supporting the AQ's role in the assessment of adult ASD, e.g. UK NICE guidelines, may need to be reconsidered.