Movie for the Assessment of Social Cognition (MASC): Spanish validation.

The team translated the Movie for the Assessment of Social Cognition (MASC) into Spanish. They gave the 45-minute video test to 50 teens and young adults with Asperger syndrome and 50 typically developing peers.

Each viewer answers 45 questions about the actors’ thoughts, feelings, and intentions. The researchers then checked if scores could tell the groups apart and if the test gave steady results across time.

The Spanish MASC earned high internal consistency (α = 0.91) and test-retest reliability (r = 0.84). People with Asperger syndrome scored about one standard deviation lower than controls, giving a large effect size (d = 1.2).

A cut-off of 26 correctly classified 86 % of all participants, showing the tool is both sensitive and specific for this age range.

Golan et al. (2008) built an earlier film task for kids. Their English version also separated ASD from controls, but it targeted 6- to young learners. de Kuijper et al. (2014) extends that idea upward to Spanish-speaking adolescents and young adults.

Sonié et al. (2013) validated a French autism trait questionnaire in teens. Like the MASC-SP, it crossed language and culture while keeping strong discrimination power, showing the broader trend of adapting ASD tools for non-English users.

Lavi et al. (2023) introduced the quick parent-report ASKY for 4- to young learners. It flags possible ASD, while the MASC-SP zooms in on one core symptom area—social cognition—offering a complementary, performance-based lens.

If you serve Spanish-speaking clients, you now have a psychometrically solid, culturally adapted test that quantifies social-cognition deficits in under an hour. Use the 26-point cut-off to document baseline skills, set treatment goals, and show change after social-skills training. Pair it with a parent screener like the ASKY to cover both perspectives quickly.