Associations Between the SRS-2 and the ASEBA Adult Self Report: Implications for Interpretation of the SRS-2 in Autistic Adults

Purpose The Social Responsiveness Scale, 2nd Edition (SRS-2) is widely used to characterize autistic features and screen for autism in clinical and research settings. Previous research indicates that scores on the parent-report SRS-2 School-age form are associated with internalizing and externalizing symptoms in both autistic and non-autistic children, yet less is known about the self-report SRS-2-Adult (SRS-2-A). Considering the widespread use of the SRS-2-A for a variety of different research and clinical purposes, examining how non-autism-specific factors affect SRS-2-A scores is warranted. Methods This study aimed to examine the relationship between scores on the SRS-2-A and the ASEBA Adult Self Report in a sample of 203 autistic independent adults. Results Findings indicate that the SRS-2-A was significantly associated with scales designed to screen for internalizing, externalizing, and personality disorders. The Avoidant Personality scale has direct overlap with SRS-2 items, which may partially explain associations with this scale. The Depressive and Anxiety scales are somewhat less easily explained. Conclusion Taken together, results suggest that SRS-2-A scores may reflect a combination of diagnostic and autism-related features, as well as symptoms associated with non-autism co-occurring conditions. Caution is warranted when using SRS-2-A scores to characterize autistic adults. Information from multiple sources is needed to help distinguish autistic features from those related to commonly co-occurring conditions, such as depression and anxiety, and ultimately inform understanding of how these features interact with other individual and contextual factors to improve measurement of autism diagnostic features.