Can autism and ADHD be evaluated online?
Yes, online assessments for ADHD and autism are valid ways to assess for the presence of autism and ADHD.
Three key barriers to receiving psychological testing are geographic distance from a qualified provider, the cost of testing, and wait times between requesting an appointment and actually being seen. Since COVID, many providers have relied on tele-assessment for diagnosis. There are many benefits to remote testing. The opportunity to observe someone in their own environment yields unique and valuable clinical information. In addition, when people access testing from their own home, they usually feel more comfortable and are able to relax and mask less.
There is increased flexibility with respect to scheduling and the ability to easily include multiple people in a visit without overwhelming the individual. Some examples of this include having a sign language interpreter, therapist, or family member who lives farther away participate.
Finally, online assessments increase access to diagnostic services for individuals with difficulty attending in-person evaluations before COVID-19. This includes, for example, individuals with transportation barriers, those living in rural areas where psychological testing is more difficult to find, or those who have difficulty taking time off of work or securing childcare for siblings during the appointment. Some adults who work from home block time off during their day to take the assessment. Individuals can participate from a library only if the library offers private booths for their computers.
Recent studies support the efficacy of tele-assessment. A study done with MS patients compared cognitive testing in person, in the hospital in a separate room from the examiner and with the patient at home. The test results were comparable to traditional in-person administration.
Telepsychology was used to assess older adults with dementia. The results suggested that tests administered via telehealth can distinguish between cognitively impaired and non-impaired individuals similar to a traditional face-to-face assessment, supporting the validity of tele-assessment. An equivalency study of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Task can be found here. Here is some information on the RIAS-2, which is the test we use.