ubjects in this study precludes an examination of this issue. The low error rate resulted from the relative simplicity of the forced-choice tack, which was designed to ensure that even nonverbal subjects could participate in the study. In general, RTs were faster in the presence of a window, slower with distracters close to the target stimulus, and unaffected by distracters far from the target. Apparently, the presence of a window diminishes the costs related to size adjustments or focusing of the attentional lens, or both. Conversely, the filtering of distracters close to the target entails costs that are reflected in slower RTs. An interesting notion from these findings is the possible relation of overarousal in person with autism and their impaired ability to filter extraneous information. An inefficient lens can be viewed as detrimental to the effective processing of information in the real world for two reasons: 1. The intake of relevant information from the environment is less than optimal. Therefore, persons with autism are leaa able to learn from and relate to the surrounding environment.2. The additional costs incurred in focusing and filtering deplete resources for other aspects of attending and information processing. With a combination of these deficiencies, persons with autism are unable to attend efficiently to the most relevant information in the environment and therefore do not effectively learn from and relate to their surroundings. This contributes to the overall impaired functioning that is typically observed in the development of persons with autism (Burack, 1994).The last test showed an assessment of a specific area of autism but there are many tests that can be given to someone who is either autistic or may potentially be autistic. Because different assessment instruments are used nationwide, there are places that provide services for children with autism that use diagnostic checklists, interviews, and...
