The present study examined the validity of Wing's (Wing & Attwood, 1987; Wing & Gould, 1979) subtypes of social impairment in a sample of autistic individuals and the relations between social deficits and role-taking ability.

Specifically, fifty-three autistic persons were assigned by clinical raters to one of a) socially aloof, b) passive interaction, or c) active, but odd interaction subtypes (Wing & Attwood, 1987; Wing & Gould, 1979). Clinical charts were reviewed for diagnostic information as well as chronological ages and, where available, estimates of intellectual ~unctioning (IQ). Teachers or direct care staff completed specific measures of social behavioral characteristics, adaptive functioning, and level of autism with regard to each subject.