1. FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY SCHOOL OF PSYCHOLOGY 2008 Public Opinion Survey on Awareness of Autism

2. About the Survey August of 2008 Telephone interviews with 1000 randomly selected men and women 21 years old or older Plus or Minus 3.1% Confidence Interval 95% Level of Confidence

3. Demographics Gender: 40% Male 60% Female Age 17% Ages 21 – 38 37% Ages 39 – 58 40% Ages 59 – 78

4. Demographics Ethnicity: 69% White 16% Black, African American 7% Hispanic 2% Asian 1% Native American 2% Mixed Educational Attainment: 47% Less than an Associates Degree 10% Two-year associate's degree 25% Four-year bachelor's degree 19% Masters or beyond

5. Additional Demographics Regional Representation: 21% Northeast 25% Midwest 35% South 20% West Hometown: 26% Urban 30% Suburban 27% Small Town 17% Rural

6. Income: 14% Under $25,000 18% $25,000 - $50,000 25% $51,000- $100,000 10% $101,000 - $150,000 4% Over $150,000 29% Refused Additional Demographics

7. Which childhood health issues should be the highest national priority? 24%Child abuse and neglect issues 16%Childhood leukemia 13%Juvenile diabetes 12%Childhood obesity 8%Don't know 7%Autism 7%Pediatric AIDS 4%Asthma 3%Muscular dystrophy 2%Attention deficit disorder 2%All of them; cannot prioritize 1%Down syndrome

8. Prioritizing Childhood Health Issues Very high & high priority Moderate priority Low priority Child abuse83%12%3% Juvenile diabetes81%13%4% Childhood leukemia80%15%3% Autism72%19%4% Muscular dystrophy72%22%3% Childhood obesity71%21%7% Pediatric AIDS70%21%4% Asthma67%27%4% Down syndrome62%27%6% ADD53%34%10%

9. When you think about childhood health issues, where would you rank autism as a major health concern? 26% Among the top three childhood health issues 60% In the top ten childhood health issues 8% A less important childhood health issue 6% Can't rank

10. How familiar are respondents with autism spectrum disorders or ASD? 9% Very familiar 17% Familiar 42% Somewhat familiar 32% Not familiar

11. Know Someone with Autism 39% of the respondents said they knew someone with autism 46% were very familiar or familiar with this autistic person

12. Most Obvious Behavior 21% Would not interact with other children 11% Very noisy 10% Not one behavior stands out 9% Very quiet 9% Would not look me in the eyes 8% Inability to communicate 7% Very rough 6% Very shy 5% Uncontrollable actions; tantrums 4% Very active 4% Self-abusive behavior 4% Withdrawn; unresponsive

13. At the time of the birth of your child or children, how well informed were you about autism? 5% Very informed 13% Informed somewhat 26% Had a little information 56% Had no information 85% Yes 6% Informed somewhat 26% Had a little information Do you feel better informed now?

14. How concerned were parents that their child would be autistic? 4% Extremely concerned 7% Very concerned 13% Slightly concerned 63% Not concerned at all 14% Not aware of autism

15. How Public Gets Info on Autism 37% Television News Stories (national/ local) 34% Newspaper and Magazines 23% Internet 10% Word of mouth 9% Parent or family of autistic individual 3% Professional Publications 2% Physician

16. Level of Confidence in Medical Community SourceA great deal Some Very little or none Your personal physician65%23%7% Hospitals35%50%14% Scientific research community 32%47%12% Medical community overall30%57%15% National Institutes of Health21%38%14% Pharmaceutical companies17%45%36% Health insurance companies14%41%43%

17. What the Public Knows to be True & Factual True Autism occurs in all racial, ethnic, and social groups 83% Autistic people of all ages can benefit from treatment 82% Currently there is no cure for autism79% In some cases, treatments can help people with autism function at near-normal levels 78% Autism lasts throughout a person's life75%

18. Individuals with autism typically have difficulties in verbal and non-verbal communication, social interactions and leisure or play activities 88% Even today, there is a great deal that researchers, scientists, and health care providers don't know about autism 87% Autism causes delays or problems in many different skills that arise from infancy to adulthood 85% Autism impacts the normal development of the brain in the areas of social interaction, communication skills and cognitive function 84% What the Public Knows to be True & Factual

19. Assessment and Treatment of Autism Strongly Agree or Agree Early diagnosis of autism and intervention of autism is important 94% Behavioral therapists are key individuals in the treatment of people with autism 77% Behavior therapies are the most effective way to get autistic individuals to maximize their capabilities 73%

20. What the Public Does Not Know % Who Didn’t Know Asperger's Syndrome is a form of autism56% Autism is caused by a preservative once found in childhood vaccines 43% There is a strong genetic component to autism37% There are no approved drugs specifically for the treatment of autism or its causes 35% Autism and related conditions affect an average of 1 in 150 children in the United States 34% Autism is a group of disorders with a range of similar features 32% Autism does not lead to the early death of those afflicted31%

21. The Vaccine Issue Autism is caused by a preservative once found in childhood vaccines. 19% True 38% False 43% Don’t know There is greater danger to the population if children do not get the appropriate vaccines than stopping vaccinations because they may cause autism. 58% Strongly agree of Agree 24% Disagree or strongly disagree 19% Don’t know

22. What the Public Expects What the Public Expects Strongly Agree or Disagree Every state should have an early intervention program for children from birth to age three 84% Finding a cure for autism should be national priority 83% Individuals with autism should be guaranteed free, appropriate public education 82% The presidential candidates should have a plan for curing autism 58%

23. Describe Public Attention to Autism 22% Much less attention than autism deserves 42% Less attention than autism deserves 24% About the right amount of attention 5% More attention than it deserves 2% Much more attention than it deserves 7% No opinion

24. Highlights of Findings and Conclusions  More than 80% of respondents say every state should have an early intervention program  83% believed that finding a cure for autism should be a national priority  82% of respondents know that treatment benefits people diagnosed with ASDs at all ages  77% believe behavioral therapists are key in treatment  73% believe behavior therapies are the most effective