
pmid: 31561830
I read with interest the newly published work by Kim et al. describing the covariance structure of parent-reported autism spectrum disorder (ASD) symptoms.1 The authors compared many different latent class, factor analytic, and factor mixture models in a large, clinically referred sample, concluding that the ASD phenotype is best described by three continuous latent factors of social interaction, communication, and repetitive behavior. I found the study to be methodologically rigorous, employing robust estimation techniques, testing a wide range of categorical-dimensional hybrid models, and even replicating the rank-order of model choices in a separate sample. However, given the large reported interfactor correlations in the final model (r = 0.78-0.83; Kim et al., Figure 2), I was disappointed that the authors did not explore a bifactor model2 of ASD phenotypic traits. In this correspondance, I aim to demonstrate the ways in which bifactor models provide further insight into the structures of complex psychopathological constructs.
Phenotype, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Humans, Stereotypic Movement Disorder, Interpersonal Relations, Autistic Disorder
Phenotype, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Humans, Stereotypic Movement Disorder, Interpersonal Relations, Autistic Disorder
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