Early Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder: Progress, Challenges, and Remaining Questions for Families and Professionals

This chapter reviews and synthesizes our current knowledge of the process and experience of families and clinicians in terms of pursuing and receiving a diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in early childhood. Obtaining an early accurate diagnosis of an ASD has many potential benefits for children and families, including improved access to early intervention services thought to dramatically impact developmental trajectories. However, the process of moving from noticing concerns, discussing concerns with providers, and negotiating resource-limited systems to obtaining an accurate diagnosis is a very challenging and stressful one for families. At present, this complex process contributes to a range of diverse impacts on children, families, and service systems. This chapter attempts to summarize our current knowledge regarding key and challenging aspects of this process and concludes with some recommendations for future research.