Sex Differences in Autism Spectrum Disorders Across the Lifespan

Purpose of ReviewThis review aimed to examine contemporary findings on sex-related differences in autism spectrum disorder from pre-school to adulthood. By exploring the literature within developmental time points, it is possible to consider emerging lifespan patterns and determine consistency of results without the impact of developmental change.Recent FindingsFindings continue to be varied due to numerous methodological differences across studies. However, some results are more consistent than others. For instance, while there is no evidence for a sex difference in cognition in early childhood, there may be executive functioning differences in adolescence/adulthood. Further males exhibit more and different restricted repetitive behaviours, while females have more motivation toward friendships and compensatory behaviours.SummaryThe results reviewed provide emerging evidence for a female behaviour phenotype of ASD. However, future research should include a non-autistic comparison sample and consider the impact of sample characterisation (e.g. age range and genotype).