Understanding aggression in autism across childhood: Comparisons with a non-autistic sample

As many as half of all autistic youth face challenges with aggression. And while research in this area is growing, the prevalence and characterization of aggressive behaviors across autistic development remains poorly understood. This lack of knowledge on the autistic experience is further clouded as aggression is rarely compared against non-autistic youth samples. To address this gap in the literature, the present study compared autistic children (N = 450) to non-autistic children (N = 432) on multiple caregiver-report measures of aggressive behavior and associated constructs (i.e., anger, disruptive behavior) across key developmental periods (<6, 6-12, 13-17 years) via a cross-sectional design. Outcomes indicated higher levels of verbal aggression and behavioral intensity for autistic youth across development. Further, autistic children under age 6 had more significant levels of physical aggression than non-autistic peers; however, these levels became equal to non-autistic peers as the youths aged. Implications for differences in the presence of aggressive behavior as well as possible treatment options for aggression are discussed.

Automated summary

Up to half of autistic youth experience challenges with aggression, yet the prevalence and characteristics of aggressive behaviors in autistic development are poorly understood due to a lack of comparison with non-autistic youth samples. This study aimed to address this gap by comparing autistic children (N=450) with non-autistic children (N=432) on caregiver-reported measures of aggressive behavior and related constructs across different developmental periods. The findings showed higher levels of verbal aggression and behavioral intensity in autistic youth, as well as more significant physical aggression in autistic children below the age of 6 compared to their non-autistic peers.