Racial Disproportionality in Autism Over 20 Years: What It Means for Special Education Disability Classifications.

PURPOSE: This study examines racial and ethnic disparities in autism prevalence using data from three National Longitudinal Transition Studies (NLTS) spanning two decades. This inquiry intends to explore: (1) changes in the educational labels assigned to students with a medical diagnosis of autism over time and (2) the disparities in these changes across different racial and ethnic groups.

METHODS

A secondary data analysis of the NLTS was conducted using the SPSS Complex Samples module. We focused on percentage distribution over time utilizing longitudinal data from the NLTS surveys.

RESULTS

The results reveal that students diagnosed with autism are often classified under various other special education categories. There are significant disparities observed in these autism categorizations, with variations in autism prevalence across different racial and ethnic groups. These disparities notably intersect with other special education categories including other health impairments, intellectual disabilities, speech and language impairment, and emotional disability.

CONCLUSION

The study suggests that racial disproportionality in the special education autism category could stem from the mechanisms of special education disability designation, which may lead to an inaccurate representation of true autism prevalence.