what does my autism quotient mean?

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i'm new on this site and have not been diagnosed with asperger's or autism, but i figure i should give it a shot.

i am an adult male (30 yrs) who took a quick autism quotient test (50 questions) online from a site and my number is 35. i took it once before a while ago (2 yrs) and i got a 32 then. on the site, this number is in the range of highly functioning autism.

i would like to go and get tested or possibly diagnosed by a professional to make sure, but before i do i'm wondering what does a number like 35 mean? is it a definite sign, or a possible maybe? i looked up common characteristics of the condition, but it can be difficult to self-diagnose since i have never been diagnosed.

any ideas or thoughts would be welcome. thanks for reading.

Possible maybe. Really nothing is as solid and reputable as a real diagnosis.

This test is a little more reputable than the test you took in my opinion. I would recommend taking it. As far as a psychiatric evaluation goes... it would be good to ask why you want it. At 30 years old it might not matter too much for you. You probably have a job and a home and have figured out how life 'ticks'. I'm not saying this very well but I hope you catch my drift. You may not need or want to worry about having Asperger's Syndrome. You may want closure... to know if you really have it or not. If you are currently happy then you might drift away from an evaluation. If you're depressed or sad then a psychiatric evaluation might benefit you greatly. The cost of an evaluation is expense, time, and possible social structure issues such as higher life insurance rates and obviously the government will 'mark' you down if you're diagnosed. Another thing is that (at least I've noticed and I think a lot of people on here can relate) if you are diagnosed then your 'aspie inhibitions' may be somewhat subconsciously unleashed for better or worse. For instance, I think and act more 'aspie' if I am going through a faze of thinking I have as. I act less 'aspie' if I don't think I have AS. I kind of go back and forth every couple months for some reason... that's why I would appreciate a diagnosis- for closure.

I would recommend thinking a lot about it.

@r84shi37

thanks for the input and the link. i will definitely check this test out. i guess for me, i really would just like to know, if thats at all possible. i'm the kind of person who likes to know more about myself, and to become more aware of who i am and the way i act and think. i like to hear an outsiders perspective (i.e. not just my own thoughts), about what kinds of things i say or do. just to get some perspective on my life and who i am both inside and out.

i am confused though about the comments you made at the end. if you or anyone else could possibly add some specifics about what acting more "aspie" means, that would be great. it almost sounds as though you see it as a frame of mind rather than as something that you really are. as though you choose to be "aspie" instead of just are. get my drift? any clarification on this might help me understand what you are referring to.

How the government/system treats you depends on, what country, you live in. I think being aspie is far easier in GB and Scandinavia than in USA.

Becoming more aspie after dx: Yeah, for a period, perhaps.
It is a fact, that aspies are prone to get stressed out quite easily, and that aspie difficulties become more apparent at such times.
Another thing is, that after some time, wondering about your becoming more aspieish after dx, you may note, that the characteristics were allways there, but you didn´t notice. It was just daily life.

Example:One typical aspie trait can be motor clumsiness: Difficulty tying shoelaces, control handwriting, throwing a ball in the right direction or handling things, not banging into doors or furniture.
Now, I have been wondering, why my motor clumsiness during stress has become more noticable. "I was never clumsy before", I think, - but then I remember all the times, when people were pissed off by my seemingly "idiotic" insecurity in physical situations - or momentary clumsiness when stressed.
In fact, people noticed and were amused by my obsession with motor precision, ever since toddlerhood.
That was simply overcompensation, because tendency to being clumsy was allways there.

It is difficult to line up the traits, as people are very different. Look at Wings Triad.

@jensen
thanks for helping to clarify and for providing an example. i appreciate hearing about other peoples experiences so that i have something to compare to.

i have never heard specifics about the kinds of treatment people get from the US gov't because of autism or asperger's. i can imagine what sorts of things you mean, but i haven't heard many people talk about it so i really don't know. can anyone give me some examples or specifics on this since i just don't know much about what happens to people who are diagnosed. thanks.