Sensory processing in adults with autism spectrum disorders.

Crane et al. (2009) asked adults with autism to fill out the Adolescent/Adult Sensory Profile.

The survey sorts each person into four sensory quadrants: low registration, sensation seeking, sensory sensitivity, and sensation avoiding.

All participants were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and lived in the community.

Almost every adult scored in the extreme range on at least one quadrant.

No two profiles looked the same—some people were seekers, others avoiders, many mixed.

The team showed that sensory issues stay common and highly individual after childhood.

Schneider et al. (2006) already found broad sensory differences in a mixed-age autism group, so the new data confirm the pattern lasts into adulthood.

Hense et al. (2019) seem to disagree: they found normal tactile spatial skills in autistic adults. The gap disappears when you notice Marlene tested one fine-touch task while Laura used a wide self-report tool—different lenses, both true.

Menezes et al. (2025) extend Laura’s work by linking low-registration (hypo) scores to real-world executive-function problems, giving you a practical red flag to watch for.

You can’t guess an adult client’s sensory world from the autism label alone. Give the AASP or a quick sensory interview at intake, note the extreme quadrants, then tailor accommodations—noise filters, movement breaks, warning before touch—one person at a time.