The overt aggression scale for rating aggression in outpatient youth with autistic disorder: Preliminary findings

Aggression is a common and costly problem in youth with developmental disabilities. Rating scales that accurately capture and measure subtypes of aggression phenomenology, frequency and severity are urgently needed, in both clinical practice and research. The authors studied the Overt Aggression Scale (OAS) in a preliminary sample of eight outpatients who participated in an ongoing placebo-controlled study of valproate for aggression in autism. Subjects' OAS aggression scores showed significant correlation with the already validated retrospectively rated Aberrant Behavior Checklist Community Scale irritability subscale. Further study of the OAS in outpatients with aggression and developmental disabilities is warranted.