Doctors are 'failing to spot Asperger in girls'

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If you add a constant to all the results then you get less people in the group at the lower end - basically showing that Danielismyname's argument is logically inconsistent. There is plenty of research showing that the average female copes better with being on the spectrum, so in a psychological assessment would show up closer to NT. If anything, we get more like an opposite result to what Danielismyname is saying.

Obviously the constant we would add it different for each person, but what is key that is on average it would be positive and significant.

^^^ you mean because I haven't died or offed myself I 'coped' better? Wow.
I wonder what would have been my fate if I hadn't coped so well?
Merle

Hrm...Well, i don't know how much relevant that is, but i read in my University's newspaper (FORUM) that a new hum.... "Chaire" (don't know the english equivalent) on the mental health of women and men was created. They basicly said that they've just realized that the game of biologic and social factors provoke important differences in mental health, gender-dependant, which have been more or less researched until today (rough translation).

Not quite. The real difference I was pointing out here is the gender roles one - go and do some reading....

runs right out at Kangoogle' bidding and catches up on her reading so I might be worthy to post . . .

Merle

For someone effectively obsessed with having Aspergers, you know scarily little about it. Maybe you only know what you want to hear and see, like so many on this site. Very disappointing really.

yas' sir, yas' sir you are probably right, and I am probably wrong, I am humbled before your mighty presense on this here website. WP is so lucky to have you! Now, was there anything else about me you wanted to critique?

Merle

The point is that if you had kept in touch with even the basic elements of autism research for the last year or so and had a half decent understanding of the fundementals of mathematics, we would not be even having this converation. Thankfully ideas are not solely evaluated by democracy and the lowest common denominator.

Before you run back and say that you manage any of the above, I ask you one question: Why did you run away from Intensity Squared? Go on, answer that. I dare you.

ask parts. he will corroborate. it was boring to me.

Merle

Excuses excuses. Now get onto reasons, tbh "it was boring" is a really lame one.

Concerning the gender ratio bias, one thing I haven't seen is a sensible explanation as to why autism/asperger's should be more common in males than females. What could possibly cause that?

One exception. I saw a paper a while back from some Brits who claimed they had found something connected to autism on the X chromosome. I haven't seen anything about that since, and it doesn't seem like anybody else has picked up the banner. New explanations for autism crop up all the time.

Anyway, I can't see much sense in the idea that autism/asperger's is X-linked, because X-linked traits don't show up in anything even close to a four to one gender ratio.

If it's straight Mendelian and it involves any of the chromosomes besides the X and Y, it should show up in equal numbers in both genders.

It often happens that external factors influence the expression of genes, but where's the gender bias in any of these external factors?

The uterine environment in a female parent should be the same regardless of the gender of the fetus, or it might vary randomly depending on what the female parent is eating or breathing or how much it rains. Likewise, the environment in early childhood should either be the same for children of both genders or it should vary randomly.

There's this idea that autism/asperger's is much more common in males. Maybe I missed something, but it seems to me that everybody is accepting an idea as correct when that idea makes absolutely no sense.

I think that's a good question, CanyonWind. I can only guess, not being an expert. Perhaps the thought is that even though autism is tied to genes other than the X chromosome, these genes are much more likely to be "activated" by hormones in a male than in a female? Or maybe it is thought that the way the male brain develops in the womb to be more analytical tends to magnify the effect of having the "autism genes"?

If we are truly starting to identify genes that are linked to autism, what would be really interesting to do would be to sample as many people who have those genes as possible-- whether they have autism or Aspergers or are NT-- and whether they are male or female. I'd really like to know what that sort of study would teach us.

KenG, this does not suprise me too much for, often the general idea is that many of the Autistic Spectrum Disorders tend to be within the male population.Not so, cause my own opinion is that any person man or woman, black or white, young or old can be within the spectrum so, I'd wish the medical community would do away with this inaccurate view of such as, I've known some female Aspergians and realistically speaking I can't say how such persons fail to notice such.. That does it for me..


ProfessorX

It's like my hubby always tells me, "But you seem to communicate better." What he means is I talk more than him and seem to have a lot of words. Unfortunately, outside of writing, I don't have a lot of organized, concise thoughts. I suffer from major verbal diarrhea, essentially because I can't grasp my abstract thoughts without first making them concrete, otherwise, the thoughts get lost in a sea of neverending connection. You'll catch me talking to myself a lot when I'm working something out. I was gifted with words, but I do not always use them appropriately, and volume and tonal modulation are often absent.

I hear this is often the way AS manifests in women, though I don't want to make a sweeping statement. To the untrained eye, one might miss the idiosyncracies in favor of checking off "communicates effectively" on their "How to Dx Asperger's" worksheets. This is why I'm trying to gather the money to see an Adult DD specialist for official Dx rather than just a general Psychiatrist (yes, I'm finally giving in, even though I'm pretty darn sure-- especially considering both of my children were Dx on the spectrum, and my similar difficulties, it's certainly not a stretch to say that I have it). My insurance pays for some of it, but I have to front the money for reimbursement. *sighs* It's $1000 per person.

Your location indicates you are in Antarctica, so it might be $1000. where you are. I live in the States and have insurance. I went for three visits with observation and diagnostic tools and was DX for a $20 co pay per visit.

It was a 'forensnic' psychologist, used to diagnosing inmates of the State Hospital of Oregon not far from where I reside. My chart notes read "denies reading "Gun and Ammo" and "Soldier of Fortune" magazine" but the science is sound. Anytime they Diagnose "300.00 (autism)" insurance won't pay, but if it is a co-morbid then most behavioural health benefits will cover continued therapy for 'anxiety' or 'obsessive compulsive disorder'.

Because a lot of the 'traits' of Aspergers are actually not that abnormal at all in the male gender? If Aspergers has, in at least some way, a "socially constructed" element, it would easily explain the higher percentage of males. And the dramatic increase in it in general as our culture has moved from placing value on "getting on and just doing something" to "getting together and having a jolly good talk about it".

Firstly, a bunch of children who wouldn't sit still, instead are active, noisy, run around and shout are increasingly labelled with a medical disorder as 'hyperactive'. (and later ADHD, ADD, and probably another half dozen by now). And the gender of these would be ... mostly male?

Later, a bunch of children who are quiet, studious, not chatty, not fashion aware are increasingly labelled with another medical disorder. And the gender of these would be .... mostly male??

And the gender of the adults teaching in the schools where all this labelling of childrens behaviour (previously unnoticed) as 'medically disordered' would be ...?

I sometimes wonder if it's all about non-acceptance of the natural extremes of 'male' behavior, rather than anything medical. Of course, the variety of human nature being as it is, some females will also be within the spectrum of traits. Though not at the rate of males.