Revisiting cognitive and adaptive functioning in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder.

Ohan et al. (2015) looked at kids and teens with autism. They gave IQ tests and the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales. They wanted to see if thinking scores matched daily-living scores.

The team checked youth both with and without intellectual disability. They used a simple case-series design. No fancy tricks—just side-by-side numbers.

Thinking scores were higher than adaptive scores in most kids. The gap was biggest for older children who did not have ID.

The classic “VABS autism profile” did not show up. In other words, the old rule that adaptive always lags far behind IQ did not hold for everyone.

Fujiura et al. (2018) extends these numbers by watching the same kids over time. They found adaptive gains stop in the teen years, so the gap you see at ten may stay at sixteen.

Rosa et al. (2017) adds detail: weak verbal and working-memory scores link to lower daily skills. Together the papers say, “Yes, the gap is real, and memory matters.”

Greene et al. (2019) warns that teachers rate adaptive skills higher than parents. So the size of the gap can look smaller at school than at home—check both reporters before you write goals.

When you see a bright child with autism who still cannot make a sandwich, do not assume laziness. Expect thinking and adaptive scores to differ, especially in higher-IQ kids. Use that gap to justify direct teaching of daily living, social, and safety skills even when classroom work is on grade level.