Exceptional skills inautismrefer to abilities that are significantly above average, often in specific areas such as memory, art, music, or calculation. These skills can be categorized as savant skills, relative strengths, or giftedness.
Recognizing and nurturing the unique strengths of each individual is important, while also providing support for areas of difficulty and otherautistic traits.
Key Points
Rationale
While autism has historically been conceptualized in terms of deficits, there has recently been a shift to a strengths-based, neurodiversity perspective that recognizes many autistic individuals possess exceptional skills (Bal et al., 2022; Donaldson et al., 2017).
Such skills are often categorized as savant skills, relative strengths, or giftedness (Clark, 2019). However, prevalence estimates vary widely across studies, ranging from 10-63% for savant skills for example (Bennett & Heaton, 2012; Howlin et al., 2009; Meilleur et al., 2015; Rimland, 1978).
Furthermore, while some research suggests exceptional skills are independent of IQ and autism severity (Clark, 2001; Treffert, 2012), other studies have found contradictory results (Howlin et al., 2009; Miller 1999).
Given discrepancies in previous findings, lack of consensus on definitions, and importance of identifying strengths to optimize outcomes for autistic individuals, further research using multiple informants is needed to clarify the nature and prevalence of exceptional skills in this population.
Method
The study was conducted in two stages:
Procedure
In Stage 1, parents and teachers independently completed online questionnaires indicating if the child had savant skills, relative strengths, and/or giftedness based on provided definitions. They gave qualitative descriptions if responding “yes.”
In Stage 2, the clinical psychologist reviewed cognitive ability scores from school records or additional testing, examined questionnaire responses, and interviewed selected parents and teachers to gather more details. The psychologist then made a determination about the presence and type of exceptional skills for each child.
Sample
Statistical measures
Descriptive statistics were used to examine rates of exceptional skills based on each informant.
Independent samples t-tests compared autism severity scores between children with and without exceptional skills.
Chi-square tested the association between exceptional skill presence and intellectual disability status. Inter-rater agreement was assessed using Cohen’s kappa.
Results
Insight
This study provides valuable insight into the complexities of identifying exceptional skills in autistic children.
The lack of agreed-upon definitions and objective criteria for savant skills, relative strengths, and giftedness also clearly impacts identification. Parent and teacher descriptions often did not align with the definitions provided.
Developing consistent, operationalized criteria will be an important next step, ideally incorporating input from the autism community.
Promisingly, the findings support the idea that exceptional skills occur across the autism spectrum, independent of symptom severity and cognitive functioning.
This reinforces the importance of adopting a strengths-based lens and proactively seeking to identify and nurture exceptional abilities as part of a comprehensive approach to educating autistic students.
Future research should aim to include multiple converging measures, informants, and settings to identify exceptional skills.
Larger and more diverse samples would enhance generalizability.
Qualitative methods could provide richer insight into how skills manifest and are perceived.
Longitudinal studies could help clarify developmental trajectories.
Most importantly, autistic individuals’ self-perceptions of their own abilities and support needs should be centered.
Strengths
This study had several methodological strengths, including:
Limitations
This study also had some methodological limitations, including:
The restricted sample and lack of skill-based measures constrain the conclusions that can be drawn about the true prevalence and nature of exceptional skills.
Results may not generalize to autistic individuals in mainstream school settings or adults. Reliance on informant report introduces potential for bias or missed abilities not observed in the contexts assessed.
Future studies should aim to include more representative samples and direct assessments of skills.
Implications
This study has important implications for practice and research.
The high degree of inconsistency between parents, teachers, and a psychologist in identifying exceptional skills signals a strong need for better training, assessments, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
Clearly, many autistic children have significant strengths that may be underrecognized and undersupported, especially in specialized settings.
At a systems level, schools should institute universal screening using multiple validated methods to identify students who may require additional challenge or accommodations to develop exceptional abilities.
Professionals will need ongoing training to enhance their ability to recognize and nurture unique strengths. Collaboration between educators, psychologists, families, and autistic individuals is essential.
A key research priority should be achieving consensus on clear, objective definitions and assessments for savant skills, relative strengths, and giftedness. This will likely require a combination of normative skill-based measures, autistic self-advocates’ perspectives, and clinical expertise.
Identifying and developing exceptional skills can enhance self-esteem, motivation, educational and occupational outcomes for autistic individuals.
A strengths-based model aligns with neurodiversity-affirming values and leverages autistic individuals’ full potential.
While much work remains, this study moves the field closer to accurately identifying and supporting the exceptional abilities of autistic children.
References
Primary reference
Clark, T., Jung, J. Y., Roberts, J., Robinson, A., & Howlin, P. (2023). The identification of exceptional skills in school‐age autistic children: Prevalence, misconceptions and the alignment of informant perspectives.Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities,36(5), 1034-1045.https://doi.org/10.1111/jar.13113
Other references
Bal, V. H., Wilkinson, E., & Fok, M. (2022). Cognitive profiles of children with autism spectrum disorder with parent-reported extraordinary talents and personal strengths.Autism,26(1), 62-74.https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613211020618
Bennett, E., & Heaton, P. (2012). Is talent in autism spectrum disorders associated with a specific cognitive and behavioural phenotype?Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 42, 2739–2753.https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-012-1533-9
Clark, T. R. (2004). The application of savant and splinter skills in the autistic population through curriculum design: A longitudinal multiple-replication case study.
Clark, T. (2019). A curriculum to support students with autism and special talents and abilities.The SAGE Handbook of Autism and Education, 315-321.
Donaldson, A. L., Krejcha, K., & McMillin, A. (2017). A strengths-based approach to autism: Neurodiversity and partnering with the autism community.Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups,2(1), 56-68.https://doi.org/10.1044/persp2.SIG1.56
Howlin, P., Goode, S., Hutton, J., & Rutter, M. (2009). Savant skills in autism: Psychometric approaches and parental reports.Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 364(1522), 1359–1367.https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2008.0328
Meilleur, A. A. S., Jelenic, P., & Mottron, L. (2015). Prevalence of clinically and empirically defined talents and strengths in autism.Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 45(5), 1354–1367.https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-014-2296-2
Miller, L. K. (1999). The savant syndrome: intellectual impairment and exceptional skill.Psychological Bulletin,125(1), 31.https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.125.1.31
Rimland, B. (1978). Savant capabilities of autistic children and their cognitive implications. In G. Serban (Ed.),Cognitive defects in the development of mental illness(pp. 43–65). Brunner/Mazel.
Treffert, D. A. (2010).Islands of genius: The bountiful mind of the autistic, acquired, and sudden savant. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Keep Learning
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Saul McLeod, PhD
BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester
Saul McLeod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.
Olivia Guy-Evans, MSc
BSc (Hons) Psychology, MSc Psychology of Education
Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors.
