Risk factors for self-injurious behaviours among 222 young children with autistic disorders.
Half of autistic toddlers hurt themselves; the youngest with birth issues and daily-living delays are in greatest danger.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Doctors looked at 222 autistic children under age seven. They asked parents about self-hitting, head-banging, and biting.
The team also checked each child’s daily-living skills, birth history, and autism severity. No treatment was given.
What they found
Half of the kids showed self-injury. The behavior was most common in the youngest children.
Kids with harder births, more severe autism, and slower self-care skills were at the highest risk.
How this fits with other research
Reid et al. (2005) followed the same kinds of children for 12 years. They found early severe behavior plus poor language often lasts into adulthood.
Chiang (2008) adds that many non-verbal kids use hitting or biting to ask for things. The risk list from LeBlanc et al. (2003) can help you spot who may need a communication plan before problem behavior starts.
Barton et al. (2019) show sensory hypersensitivity drives repetitive acts in both autistic and typical kids. Sensory pain could be one reason the youngest toddlers in LeBlanc et al. (2003) hurt themselves more.
Why it matters
Use the four red flags—young age, birth complications, severe autism, and daily-living delays—to screen early. When you see them, start teaching communication and sensory breaks right away. Acting early may stop a short-term risk from becoming a 12-year problem.
Want CEUs on This Topic?
The ABA Clubhouse has 60+ free CEUs — live every Wednesday. Ethics, supervision & clinical topics.
Join Free →Pull your client list, flag any under seven with daily-living delays, and add a functional communication goal this week.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
The aim of this study was to identify risk factors for self-injurious behaviours (SIBs) in children with autistic disorders. The occurrence of SIB was examined in comparison with the following variables: chronological age, sex, adaptive skills, speech level, associated medical condition, degree of autism and parental social class. The subjects were 222 children aged under 7 years and all of them fulfilled the ICD-10 criteria for infantile autism. Retrospective data were collected on demographic characteristics and medical condition. Children were assessed in terms of speech, degree of autism and adaptive skills in communication, socialization and daily living skills domains. Results indicated that 50% of the children experienced SIB and 14.6% had severe SIBs. Lower chronological age, associated perinatal condition, a higher degree of autism and a higher daily living skills delay were risk factors of SIBs but parental class, sex and epilepsy were not.
Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 2003 · doi:10.1046/j.1365-2788.2003.00507.x