Executive functions in young children with autism.
The executive dysfunction hypothesis of autism has received support from most studies of older people with autism; however, studies of young children have produced mixed results. Two studies are presented that compare the performance of preschoolers with autism (mean = 51 months/4.3 years of age) to a control group matched on age, and verbal and nonverbal ability. The first study (n = 18 autism and 17 control) found no group differences in performance on 8 executive function tasks (A not B, Object Retrieval, A not B with Invisible Displacement, 3-Boxes Stationary and Scrambled, 6-Boxes Stationary and Scrambled, and Spatial Reversal), but did find that children with autism initiated fewer joint attention and social interaction behaviors. The second (longitudinal) study of a subset of the children (n = 13 autism and 11 control) from the first study found that neither groups' performance on Spatial Reversal changed significantly over the course of a year. The results of these studies pose a serious challenge to the executive dysfunction hypothesis of autism.
Griffith
E M
EM
Department of Psychology, University of Denver, CO 80208, USA. egriffit@nova.psy.du.edu
Pennington
B F
BF
Wehner
E A
EA
Rogers
S J
SJ
D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007100:Imitative Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009769:Object Attachment; D010988:Play and Playthings; D013037:Spatial Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D013997:Time Factors