Sigrid Piening

A new Dutch screening questionnaire for autism (16+) was developed to better capture the experiences of women with autism: the Autistic Women’s Experience (AWE). Its psychometric properties were tested in a group of autistic adults (n=79 women and n=59 men) and a group of adults from the general population (n=238 women and n=236 men). Th e AWE consists of 49 items (22 items from the Autism-spectrum Questionnaire (AQ) and 27 newly developed items). Surprisingly, no gender diff erences were found on the AWE total score, either within the autism group or the group from the general population. Both AQ and AWE appeared to be excellent measures for assessing autistic traits in both men and women. Th e AWE adds additional clinical value for gender-sensitive autism care.