The power of a label: how an autism diagnosis shapes preschool teachers’ assessment of behaviour

Purpose This study aims to examine whether informing preschool teachers that a child has an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis changes how they evaluate that child’s behaviour and which types of behaviour are most sensitive to such disclosure. Design/methodology/approach In Zagreb, Croatia, 105 mainstream preschool teachers formed an informed (n = 57) and an uninformed (n = 48) group. Both read six identical written vignettes describing a preschool boy: two social communication behaviours, two restricted and repetitive behaviours and two neutral behaviours. Versions differed only in the diagnostic information. Teachers rated each vignette on a five-point positivity scale within five seconds. Groups were compared using Mann–Whitney U tests with bootstrapped effect sizes and open-ended responses from the informed group were analysed thematically. Findings Compared with uninformed teachers, informed teachers rated social withdrawal (r = 0.28), sensory hyperreactivity (r = 0.47) and socially inappropriate reactions (r = 0.78) significantly more positively. No differences emerged for insistence on sameness or for the neutral behaviours, indicating that the disclosure effect was selective rather than global. Effects were largest for behaviour that would otherwise invite attributions of intentional misconduct. Thematic analysis indicated that diagnostic awareness fostered empathy, adjusted expectations and individualised approaches. Originality/value Whereas most research addresses general attitudes towards inclusion, this study isolates the immediate interpretative effect of a diagnostic label under time pressure. For parents weighing disclosure, it offers evidence that a label did not produce harsher judgements, while cautioning that more favourable ratings of vignettes are not evidence of changed classroom practice.