April 11, 2020
Category: 

The Aspie Quiz

Last updated on May 21, 2023

The Aspie Quiz is a self-administered questionnaire to measure autistic traits in adults (age 16+) with an IQ in the normal range (IQ >=80). In fact, it measures both autistic and neurotypical traits in five domains: talent, perception, communication, relationship, and social.

Basic information
Questions: 121
Duration: 10–20 minutes
Type: screening tool
Author: Leif Ekblad
Publishing year: 2013
Seminal paper: Autism, Personality, and Human Diversity: Defining Neurodiversity in an Iterative Process Using Aspie Quiz (Ekblad, 2013)

Take the test here:


Dr. Natalie’s rating: 5 stars for appropriate and respectful wording, 5 stars for clarity & lack of ambiguity, and 4 stars for testing accuracy.Dr. Natalie’s rating: 5 stars for appropriate and respectful wording, 5 stars for clarity & lack of ambiguity, and 4 stars for testing accuracy.


Who the test is designed for

  • Adults (age 16+) with IQ in the normal range (IQ >=80).

Test versions & translations

  • The most up-to-date version of the Aspie Quiz is version 4.
  • The Aspie Quiz is available in various languages, however, this is version dependent:
    • Version 4: Swedish, German, Russian, Polish, Italian, Slovak, Portuguese, French, Chinese, Hungarian
    • Version 3: Turkish
    • Version 2: Spanish
    • Version 1: Norwegian, Czech, Dutch

Taking the test

Registering is unnecessary if you would rather not—simply click the “I accept” button.

The Aspie Quiz consists of 121 questions, giving you 4 choices for each question:

  • ? — Don’t Know
  • 0 — No/Never
  • 1 — A Little
  • 2 — Yes/Often

Note: The questions are reordered each time you take the test.


Scoring

The Aspie Quiz is made up of 121 questions that fall into five domains:

  • Talent
  • Perception
  • Communication
  • Relationships
  • Social

The Aspie Quiz outputs a neurodiverse and a neurotypical score, indicating that the participant is neurodiverse, neurotypical, or mixed.

  • Your neurodiverse (“Aspie”) score: 0–200
  • Your neurotypical (Non-autistic) score: 0–200

The following are the possible results based on your scores:

  • Very likely autistic (neurodiverse) — Your Aspie score was at least 35 points higher than your neurotypical score.
  • Very likely neurotypical (neurotypical) — Your neurotypical score was at least 35 points higher than your Aspie score.
  • Both autistic and neurotypical traits (mixed) — The interval in-between (less than 35 points difference).
The Aspie Quiz diagram on which the results of the test are mapped.
Natalie’s score: 126 (ND) / 86 (NT)

Validity

The threshold of 35 accurately confirms 80% of diagnosed level 1 autistics/PDD-NOS.[1]Autism, Personality, and Human Diversity: Defining Neurodiversity in an Iterative Process Using Aspie Quiz (Ekblad, 2013)


An illustration of Natalie pointing to the title ‘Discussion’.

Discussion

Overall I found that the Aspie Quiz was good. The following are its strengths:

  • It has gone through several iterations, which has resulted in the questions being more updated than the AQ or RAADS–R.
  • There are four more questions than results, because Ekblad included four control questions to ensure that people were answering truthfully.
  • The scoring shows possible comorbidities, which is helpful because it opens other avenues of investigation related to neurodiversity. For example, I saw that a low neurotypical talent score is related to dyslexia and dyscalculia.
  • Even though some of the questions are enigmatic, they are overall reasonably easy to understand.

The choices ‘Yes’, ‘No’, ‘A Little’ and ‘Don’t Know’ felt more user-friendly, or a little softer around the edges. I did not experience as much agonizing back and forth over the answers. (Kendall)

The following are some of the weaknesses of the Aspie Quiz:

  • Version 4 has some errors in matching the questions and results. I think these are likely artifacts leftover from the previous three versions.
  • Initially puzzling is that the neurotypical domains refer to deficits or differences in specific skills.
  • Some of the questions are unfamiliar with autistic traits. For example, a preference for walking behind a person.

Embrace Autism | The Aspie Quiz | icon Test

Five domains

The Aspie Quiz is made up of 121 questions that fall into five domains:[2]Aspie Quiz | Rdos

Aspie Quiz domains
DomainHigh ND score
indicates:
High ND score
is associated with:
Low NT score
indicates challenges with:
Talent
  • Strong/special interests

  • Noticing details and patterns
Perception
  • Routine-driven and need for predictability

  • Hypersensitivity or hyposensitivity
  • Reading facial expressions

  • Recognizing people
Communication
  • Atypical nonverbal communication

  • Stimming
  • Autism Spectrum Conditions (ASC)
  • Ability to interpret typical nonverbal communication

  • Ability display typical nonverbal communication
Relationships
  • Atypical attachments

  • Atypical sexual preferences

  • Typical dating

  • Typical sexual preferences

Social
  • Egocentrism

  • Correctness over social acceptance
  • Social skills

  • Forming friendships
A table showing the five domains of the Aspie Quiz and what the scores in each domain correlate with.

Recommended next steps

After the Aspie Quiz, consider taking one of the tests below.

Autism Spectrum Quotient

A simple screening test that is used as a basis
for pursuing a formal autism evaluation

CAT-Q

Measures camouflaging, and can account
for lower scores on other autism tests

RBQ-2A

Measures restricted and repetitive behaviours in adults

Online autism tests can play an essential role in the process of self-discovery, and may inform your decision to pursue a formal diagnosis. For a formal assessment, please see a knowledgeable medical professional trained in assessing autism.


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If you are looking for an autism assessment,
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You can find more information here:

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References

This article
was written by:
dr-natalie-engelbrecht
Dr. Natalie Engelbrecht ND RP is a dually licensed naturopathic doctor and registered psychotherapist, and a Canadian leader in trauma, PTSD, and integrative medicine strictly informed by scientific research. She was diagnosed at 46, and her autism plays a significant role in who she is as a doctor, and how she interacts with and cares for her patients and clients.

Disclaimer

Although our content is generally well-researched
and substantiated, or based on personal experience,
note that it does not constitute medical advice.

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Land acknowledgement

Embrace Autism recognizes and acknowledges the traditional lands of the Indigenous peoples across Ontario. From the lands of the Anishinaabe to the Attawandaron and Haudenosaunee, these lands surrounding the Great Lakes are steeped in First Nations history. We are in solidarity with Indigenous brothers and sisters to honour and respect Mother Earth. We acknowledge and give gratitude for the wisdom of the Grandfathers and the four winds that carry the spirits of our ancestors that walked this land before us. Embrace Autism is located on the Treaty Lands and Territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit. We acknowledge and thank the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation—the Treaty holders—for being stewards of this traditional territory.

A First Nations symbol, consisting of a Sun surrounded by four Eagle feathers.

Land acknowledgement

Embrace Autism recognizes and acknowledges the traditional lands of the Indigenous peoples across Ontario. From the lands of the Anishinaabe to the Attawandaron and Haudenosaunee, these lands surrounding the Great Lakes are steeped in First Nations history. We are in solidarity with Indigenous brothers and sisters to honour and respect Mother Earth. We acknowledge and give gratitude for the wisdom of the Grandfathers and the four winds that carry the spirits of our ancestors that walked this land before us. Embrace Autism is located on the Treaty Lands and Territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit. We acknowledge and thank the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation—the Treaty holders—for being stewards of this traditional territory.

A First Nations symbol, consisting of a Sun surrounded by four Eagle feathers.
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