Socioeconomic Status among Utah Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Mental Retardation

Background: A number of studies have associated higher social class and maternal education with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and lower social class and maternal education with mental retardation (MR).

Objectives: The goal of this study was to examine and compare the socioeconomic status (SES) of children with ASD-only, MR-only, and ASD with MR (ASD/MR), with SES of children from a comparable birth cohort.

Methods: This study utilized the datasets from Utah Registry of Autism and Developmental Disabilities (URADD), Utah Birth Certificate Records and Utah State Tax Commission. The URADD identified children born in 1994 with ASD-only (n=98), MR-only (n= 113), ASD/MR (n=33) and a population-based birth cohort (n=24,361) living in Salt Lake, Davis and Utah counties in 2002.  Socioeconomic status was measured using various income indices and level of maternal education. Chi-square, T-tests and ANOVA were computed.  The correlation between maternal education, household income, and taxes paid was computed for each study group. Multiple logistic regression models were generated with 95% CI using SAS 9.1.

Results: The four groups were fairly homogeneous across measures of income and tax exemptions in 1994.  Mother’s of MR cases (MR-only and ASD/MR) were significantly older compared to mothers from the birth cohort (p=.02).  However, there was no significant difference across all socioeconomic indicators.  Families of ASD-only cases had significantly higher incomes (p=.03 and a net difference of $220) and paid significantly higher taxes (p=.04 and a net difference of $44) than birth cohorts.  Mother’s of ASD-only cases compared to MR-only cases had significantly higher education (p=.002).   There was no significant difference across all SES indicators between families of ASD/MR cases compared to the birth cohort.  Irregardless of income, mothers of ASD-only cases were 1.9 times more likely (p=.03) to have an education above high school. 

Conclusions: The ASD-only cases were significantly different on measures of income, taxes paid, and maternal education.  Further study is needed to compare socioeconomic variations among children with ASD-only, MR-only, and ASD/MR.