FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY SCHOOL OF PSYCHOLOGY 2008 Public Opinion Survey on Awareness of Autism.

FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

SCHOOL OF PSYCHOLOGY

2008 Public Opinion Survey on Awareness of Autism

About the Survey

• August of 2008

• Telephone interviews with 1000 randomly selected men and women 21 years old or older

• Plus or Minus 3.1% Confidence Interval

• 95% Level of Confidence

Demographics

Gender: 40% Male60% Female

Age 17% Ages 21 – 3837% Ages 39 – 5840% Ages 59 – 78

DemographicsEthnicity:

69% White16% Black, African American 7% Hispanic 2% Asian 1% Native American 2% Mixed Educational Attainment:

47% Less than an Associates Degree10% Two-year associate's degree25% Four-year bachelor's degree19% Masters or beyond

Additional Demographics

Regional Representation: 21% Northeast25% Midwest35% South20% West

Hometown: 26% Urban30% Suburban27% Small Town17% Rural

Income:14% Under $25,00018% $25,000 - $50,00025% $51,000- $100,00010% $101,000 - $150,000 4% Over $150,00029% Refused

Additional Demographics

Which childhood health issues should be the highest national priority?

24% Child abuse and neglect issues16% Childhood leukemia13% Juvenile diabetes12% Childhood obesity 8% Don't know 7% Autism 7% Pediatric AIDS 4% Asthma 3% Muscular dystrophy 2% Attention deficit disorder 2% All of them; cannot prioritize 1% Down syndrome

Prioritizing Childhood Health Issues Very high &

high priorityModerate priority

Low priority

Child abuse 83% 12% 3%

Juvenile diabetes 81% 13% 4%

Childhood leukemia 80% 15% 3%

Autism 72% 19% 4%

Muscular dystrophy 72% 22% 3%

Childhood obesity 71% 21% 7%

Pediatric AIDS 70% 21% 4%

Asthma 67% 27% 4%

Down syndrome 62% 27% 6%

ADD 53% 34% 10%

When you think about childhood health issues, where would you rank autism as a major health concern?

26% Among the top three childhood health issues60% In the top ten childhood health issues 8% A less important childhood health issue 6% Can't rank

How familiar are respondents with autism spectrum disorders or ASD?

9% Very familiar17% Familiar42% Somewhat familiar32% Not familiar

Know Someone with Autism

39% of the respondents said they knew someone with autism

46% were very familiar or familiar with this autistic person

Most Obvious Behavior21% Would not interact with other children

11% Very noisy

10% Not one behavior stands out

9% Very quiet

9% Would not look me in the eyes

8% Inability to communicate

7% Very rough

6% Very shy

5% Uncontrollable actions; tantrums

4% Very active

4% Self-abusive behavior

4% Withdrawn; unresponsive

At the time of the birth of your child or children, how well informed were you about autism? 5% Very informed

13% Informed somewhat

26% Had a little information

56% Had no information

85% Yes

6% Informed somewhat

26% Had a little information

Do you feel better informed now?

How concerned were parents that their child would be autistic? 4% Extremely concerned

7% Very concerned

13% Slightly concerned

63% Not concerned at all

14% Not aware of autism

How Public Gets Info on Autism

37% Television News Stories (national/ local)34% Newspaper and Magazines23% Internet10% Word of mouth 9% Parent or family of autistic individual 3% Professional Publications 2% Physician

Level of Confidence in Medical Community

Source A great deal

Some Very little or none

Your personal physician 65% 23% 7%

Hospitals 35% 50% 14%

Scientific research community

32% 47% 12%

Medical community overall 30% 57% 15%

National Institutes of Health 21% 38% 14%

Pharmaceutical companies 17% 45% 36%

Health insurance companies 14% 41% 43%

What the Public Knows to be True & Factual

True

Autism occurs in all racial, ethnic, and social groups

83%

Autistic people of all ages can benefit from treatment

82%

Currently there is no cure for autism 79%

In some cases, treatments can help people with autism function at near-normal levels

78%

Autism lasts throughout a person's life 75%

Individuals with autism typically have difficulties in verbal and non-verbal communication, social interactions and leisure or play activities

88%

Even today, there is a great deal that researchers, scientists, and health care providers don't know about autism

87%

Autism causes delays or problems in many different skills that arise from infancy to adulthood

85%

Autism impacts the normal development of the brain in the areas of social interaction, communication skills and cognitive function

84%

What the Public Knows to be True & Factual

Assessment and Treatment of Autism

Strongly Agree or AgreeEarly diagnosis of autism and intervention of autism

is important94%

Behavioral therapists are key individuals in the treatment of people with autism

77%

Behavior therapies are the most effective way to get autistic individuals to maximize their capabilities

73%

What the Public Does Not Know% Who Didn’t

Know

Asperger's Syndrome is a form of autism 56%

Autism is caused by a preservative once found in childhood vaccines

43%

There is a strong genetic component to autism 37%

There are no approved drugs specifically for the treatment of autism or its causes

35%

Autism and related conditions affect an average of 1 in 150 children in the United States

34%

Autism is a group of disorders with a range of similar features

32%

Autism does not lead to the early death of those afflicted 31%

The Vaccine Issue

Autism is caused by a preservative once found in childhood vaccines.

19% True38% False43% Don’t know

There is greater danger to the population if children do not get the appropriate vaccines than stopping vaccinations because they may cause autism.

58% Strongly agree of Agree 24% Disagree or strongly disagree 19% Don’t know

What the Public Expects

Strongly Agree or DisagreeEvery state should have an early intervention program for children from birth to age three

84%

Finding a cure for autism should be national priority

83%

Individuals with autism should be guaranteed free, appropriate public education

82%

The presidential candidates should have a plan for curing autism

58%

Describe Public Attention to Autism

22% Much less attention than autism deserves42% Less attention than autism deserves24% About the right amount of attention 5% More attention than it deserves 2% Much more attention than it deserves 7% No opinion

Highlights of Findings and Conclusions

More than 80% of respondents say every state should have an early intervention program

83% believed that finding a cure for autism should be a national priority

82% of respondents know that treatment benefits people diagnosed with ASDs at all ages

77% believe behavioral therapists are key in treatment

73% believe behavior therapies are the most effective