A developmental assessment for children under age 3 is an attempt to assess various aspects of the child's functioning, including areas such as cognition, communication, behavior, social interaction, motor and sensory abilities, and adaptive skills. Assessment of the family and the child's environment also provides important contextual information. Topics covered in this section This section covers the basic aspects of the general developmental assessment for young children with suspected developmental problems including possible autism. This section focuses on the general approach to the developmental assessment, including some specific components of such an assessment, but does not review information on specific autism assessment instruments. Basis for guideline recommendations about the general developmental assessment In the previous section on the use of autism assessment instruments, the guideline recommendations are based on the panel's interpretation of an extensive and systematic review of the scientific literature. The panel did not attempt to systematically evaluate the research evidence on effectiveness of the general developmental assessment methods discussed in this section as this was considered outside the specific scope of the guideline. Therefore, guideline recommendations in this section are based on the consensus opinion of the panel, using its collective knowledge and experience in assessing children with autism. In the panel's opinion, these recommendations reflect appropriate practices for assessing children with possible autism and are generally consistent with the scientific knowledge in this field.