1968 Volume 34 Issue 5 Pages 228-236
An attempt was made to construct differential diagnostic scales to discirimnate autistic children from mentally retarded and normal children. A list of 96 items covering various situations to which autistic children might react (cf Kanner, 1943; Asperger, 1944) were administered to three groups of mothers who had autistic children (N = 95) ; mentally retardates (N = 97), and normals (N = 90). Following statistical analyses (x2-test) of the results, 73 items were selected for Autistic-Mentally Retarded Discrimination Scale and 37 items for Autistic-Normal Discrimination Scale. For the use of differential diagnosis, cutting points for these scales were determined in terms of φ-coefficients.