The Broad Autism Phenotype Questionnaire: Mothers versus Fathers of Children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder

Parents of individuals with autism were examined using the Broad Autism Phenotype Questionnaire (BAPQ; Hurley et al. in "J Autism Dev Disord" 37:1679-1690, 2007) assessing BAP-related personality and language characteristics. The BAPQ was administered to parents as a self-report and as an informant (spouse)-based measure. Results indicated the same pattern of differences for the informant and best-estimate (average between self-report and informant scores) reports. Fathers were rated as more "aloof" than mothers, whereas mothers were rated as more "rigid" than fathers. Fathers described their wives as less "aloof" and more "rigid" compared to the mothers' self-descriptions. Correlational analyses revealed no significant associations among parent/child characteristics and parents' BAPQ scores. Results are discussed in reference to sex differences in BAP-related characteristics in parents of children with autism.