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An Investigation of Psychiatric Comorbidity and Symptom Awareness Among Male Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorders

The purpose of this study was to investigate presence and awareness of psychological problems and functioning in adolescents with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and comorbid psychiatric conditions. For this reason, 26 adolescent males diagnosed with both “high-functioning” ASD and psychiatric conditions were assessed. Twenty-six age- and IQ-matched males without ASD or psychiatric histories served as controls. Scores on the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment (ASEBA) and the Rating of Functioning (ROF) scale were compared with repeated-measures analyses of variance and paired-samples t tests. Results from the ASEBA indicated that adolescents in the ASD group reported significantly fewer psychological and behavioral problems than on the parent report. Similarly, parents reported significantly more functional problems on the ROF, but both parents and adolescents predicted significantly better future functioning. On both the ASEBA and ROF, adolescents with ASD reported more problems than adolescents in the control group. These findings suggest that adolescents with ASD are aware that they have more psychological problems than their peers, but that they are not aware of as many problems as their parents perceive.