Preliminary Data on Wandering
The Kennedy Krieger Institute reports on some preliminary data:
Based on responses to the IAN Elopement and Wandering Questionnaire, it is clear that roughly half of children with ASD between the ages of 4 and 10 attempt to elope. This rate is nearly four times higher than for the children’s unaffected siblings. Between ages 7 and 10, almost 30% of children with ASD are still engaging in elopement behavior, a rate eight times higher than for their unaffected siblings. These figures are especially sobering when 35% of families with children who elope report their children are “never” or “rarely" able to communicate their name, address, or phone number by any means.
