ArticlePloS one2015
Sex and STEM Occupation Predict Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ) Scores in Half a Million People.
Article in PloS one, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 24 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
24 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Autism Spectrum Disorder and Gender Dysphoria/Incongruence. A systematic Literature Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2023Pooled it
- Article
- Game Changer: Exploring the Role of Board Games in the Lives of Autistic People.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2025Article
- The influence of iconicity and autistic traits on novel word learning: a cross-cultural investigation.Royal Society open science · 2025Article
- Measuring the Autistic Women's Experience (AWE).International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
- Shining a Light on a Hidden Population: Social Functioning and Mental Health in Women Reporting Autistic Traits But Lacking Diagnosis.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2023Article
- Revisiting the Relationship between Cybercrime, Autistic Traits, and Autism.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2023Article
- Evidence of partner similarity for autistic traits, systemizing, and theory of mind via facial expressions.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Mediating Effect of Emotional and Social Competences on Interrelations Between Gender, Age and the Broad Autism Phenotype.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2021Article
- I Have a Fear of Negative Evaluation, Get Me Out of Here! Examining Latent Constructs of Social Anxiety and Autistic Traits in Neurotypical and Autistic Young People.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2021Article
- Face individual identity recognition: a potential endophenotype in autism.Molecular autism · 2020Article
- Autistic traits, systemising, empathising, and theory of mind in transgender and non-binary adults.Molecular autism · 2020Article
- Empathic disequilibrium in two different measures of empathy predicts autism traits in neurotypical population.Molecular autism · 2020Article
- Differences in anxieties and social networks in a group-matched sample of autistic and typically developing students transitioning to university.Autism : the international journal of research and practice · 2020Article
- Should Autism Spectrum Conditions Be Characterised in a More Positive Way in Our Modern World?Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2020Article
- The stability of autistic traits in transgender adults following cross-sex hormone treatment.International journal of transgender health · 2020Article
- Is There a Relationship Between Cyber-Dependent Crime, Autistic-Like Traits and Autism?Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2019Article
- Testing the Empathizing-Systemizing theory of sex differences and the Extreme Male Brain theory of autism in half a million people.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2018Article
- Does stereopsis account for the link between motor and social skills in adults?Molecular autism · 2018Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors.
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Abstract
This study assesses Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ) scores in a 'big data' sample collected through the UK Channel 4 television website, following the broadcasting of a medical education program. We examine correlations between the AQ and age, sex, occupation, and UK geographic region in 450,394 individuals. We predicted that age and geography would not be correlated with AQ, whilst sex and occupation would have a correlation. Mean AQ for the total sample score was m = 19.83 (SD = 8.71), slightly higher than a previous systematic review of 6,900 individuals in a non-clinical sample (mean of means = 16.94) This likely reflects that this big-data sample includes individuals with autism who in the systematic review score much higher (mean of means = 35.19). As predicted, sex and occupation differences were observed: on average, males (m = 21.55, SD = 8.82) scored higher than females (m = 18.95; SD = 8.52), and individuals working in a STEM career (m = 21.92, SD = 8.92) scored higher than individuals non-STEM careers (m = 18.92, SD = 8.48). Also as predicted, age and geographic region were not meaningfully correlated with AQ. These results support previous findings relating to sex and STEM careers in the largest set of individuals for which AQ scores have been reported and suggest the AQ is a useful self-report measure of autistic traits.
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Registered trials
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