Alsehemi Matar A, Abousaadah Mahmoud M, Sairafi Razan A, Jan Mohammed M
Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Neurosciences (Riyadh). 2017 Jul;22(3):213-215. doi: 10.17712/nsj.2017.3.20160525.
Examine the awareness of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in our community which would help in early recognition and improved support of affected families.
A focused 20-item questionnaire was designed to survey the public awareness and knowledge of ASD. Personal interviews were conducted during an ASD awareness day, which was organized in a major shopping mall on February 20, 2015 in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
A total of 259 individuals participated in the study with 47% being <30 years of age and 57% being females. Most participants (60%) were married, educated (68% university level), and employed (54%). When asked if they knew what autism is, 88% responded positively. However, when asked to rate their degree of knowledge, 41% felt that it is weak. Females and those older than 30 years of age were more likely to feel knowledgeable (p=0.04 for females and p=0.013 for those >30 years of age). Females were more likely to think that autistic children can be employed in the future (p=0.008), whereas males were more likely to think that autism is similar to mental retardation (p=0.005).
The public awareness of ASD needs improvement. Areas for targeted education were identified to help improve the quality of life of autistic children and their families.
调查我们社区对自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）的认知情况，这将有助于早期识别并改善对受影响家庭的支持。
设计了一份包含20个条目的针对性问卷，以调查公众对ASD的认知和了解程度。在沙特阿拉伯王国吉达市的一个大型购物中心于2015年2月20日组织的ASD认知日期间进行了个人访谈。
共有259人参与了该研究，其中47%年龄小于30岁，57%为女性。大多数参与者（60%）已婚、受过教育（68%为大学学历）且有工作（54%）。当被问及是否知道自闭症是什么时，88%的人给出了肯定回答。然而，当被要求对自己的知识程度进行评分时，41%的人觉得自己了解得较少。女性和年龄大于30岁的人更有可能觉得自己知识丰富（女性p=0.04，年龄大于30岁的人p=0.013）。女性更有可能认为自闭症儿童未来可以就业（p=0.008），而男性更有可能认为自闭症与智力迟钝相似（p=0.005）。
公众对ASD的认知需要提高。确定了有针对性的教育领域，以帮助提高自闭症儿童及其家庭的生活质量。
