Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder whose incidence is rising. School-based professionals are in an ideal position to provide the much-needed assessment and intervention supports for students with ASD, as the professionals’ placement within a formal system affords the opportunity to observe and support children in a structured environment. This article will provide school-based psychologists with current information on the clinical features of ASD, best practice assessment and diagnostic approaches for the disorder, and information pertaining to intervention via the use of a clinical case study to inform readers about the clinical reasoning that ensues throughout the process of assessment to intervention.

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The present study was undertaken to investigate patterns of adaptive functioning in children with developmental delays in an early intervention (EI) context. The primary caregivers of 60 children with development delays receiving multidisciplinary EI services completed a standardized assessment of children's adaptive behaviour and a demographic questionnaire. Adaptive variables were analysed across six diagnostic categories to determine if and how children with different developmental delays exhibited unique adaptive profiles within EI contexts. Distinctive patterns of adaptive behaviour emerged for children in each diagnostic grouping, suggesting that EI programming can be planned according to the diagnosis. Findings also provide a foundation for subsequent analyses of change over time in the adaptive functioning of children with developmental delays in EI contexts. Adaptive Functioning 3 Résumé Cette étude a été entrepris pour examiner le fonctionnement adaptif chez les enfants ayant des délais développementals dans un contexte d'une intervention précoce. Les gardiens de 60 enfants ayant des délais développementals qui reçoivent des interventions précoces multidisciplinaires ont completés une évaluation standardisée du comportement adaptif de leurs enfants ainsi qu'un questionnaire démographique. Les variables adaptives ont étés analysées parmi 6 catégories diagnostiques pour déterminer si et comment les enfants ayant des délais développementals ont montré des profils adaptifs uniques parmi des contextes d'intervention précoce. Des profils distinctifs du comportement adaptif ont été dévoilés chez les enfants dans chaque groupe diagnostic. Ceci suggère qu'une programmation d'intervention précoce peut être planifiée selon le diagnostic. De plus, les résultats ici fournissent une base pour des analyses subséquents du changement temporel dans le fonctionnement adaptif des enfants ayant des délais développementals dans une contexte d'une intervention précoce. Adaptive Functioning 4 Acknowledgements I would like to acknowledge my supervisor, Professor Ingrid E. Sladeczek, for her guidance, encouragement, and invaluable support throughout the planning and preparation of this thesis. I have been inspired by her balanced approach and expertise in the field, and I appreciate her attentive and enthusiastic supervision. I would also like to thank my colleagues from the Canadian Early Intervention Research Team, Anastasia Karagiannakis, Nancy Miodrag, Jennifer Saracino, Heidi Oppen, as well as the countless research volunteers who provided me with valuable assistance and input for this project. The shared research planning, coordination, data collection, and scoring in our research laboratory were an immense help to me as I completed the data analyses and writing of this thesis. Finally, I would like to express deep gratitude to my husband, parents, sister, extended family members, and friends for their support, attention, and patience during my educational pursuits, most especially this thesis. And to baby Noah, who joined...