Translation, Cross-cultural adaptation and Pretest of the Girls Questionnaire for Autism Spectrum Condition (GQ-ASC) for Brazilian Portuguese
This publication is included in the Autistic Autism Scholarship Project. one author of this publication is identified as autistic in the project.
About the autistic author markerSpadini, A. V., Verçoza, P., Santos, A. C. d., Portolese, J., Graeff-Martins, A. S., Attwood, T., & Caye, A. (2026). Translation, Cross-cultural adaptation and Pretest of the Girls Questionnaire for Autism Spectrum Condition (GQ-ASC) for Brazilian Portuguese [Preprint]. Springer Science and Business Media LLC. https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9034580/v1
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Abstract
Abstract Introduction: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in adult women presents diagnostic challenges due to phenotypic features that differ from the classic male presentation, particularly social camouflaging and internalized symptoms. The Girls Questionnaire for Autism Spectrum Condition (GQ-ASC) was developed to address this gap. In Brazil, however, there is a lack of validated instruments designed for this population. Objective: To translate, culturally adapt, and conduct a pretest of the GQ-ASC for Brazilian Portuguese. Methods: The study followed international guidelines for cross-cultural adaptation, including independent forward translations, synthesis, back-translation, and expert committee review. The pre-final version was administered to 31 adult women with a formal ASD diagnosis recruited through expert referrals. The Social Responsiveness Scale, Second Edition (SRS-2), was used for exploratory convergent analysis. Cognitive debriefing interviews were conducted to assess item comprehension and cultural adequacy. Results: Expert evaluation indicated high semantic, idiomatic, experiential, and conceptual equivalence across items. In the pretest sample, the mean total GQ-ASC score was 63.3, with all participants scoring above the original screening cutoff of 56. The instrument showed high acceptability and alignment with expected autism-related profiles. Qualitative feedback indicated that while the translation was accurate, some items required additional contextual clarification to reduce ambiguity. This led to the development of two Brazilian versions: a concise standard version and a detailed version including explanatory examples. Conclusion: The Brazilian Portuguese adaptation of the GQ-ASC was successful and demonstrated cultural adequacy and comprehensibility. The scale shows promise as an auxiliary tool for identifying autistic traits in adult women in Brazil, warranting further psychometric validation in larger samples.
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