title: Attentional network deficits in children with autism spectrum disorder.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often demonstrate deficient attentional ability, but the specific nature of the deficit is unclear. The Attention Networks model provides a useful approach to deconstruct this attentional deficit into its component parts.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-two neurotypical (NT) children and 14 children with ASD performed the child version of the Attention Network Test (ANT). The latter requires participants to indicate the direction of a centre target stimulus, which is presented above/below fixation and sometimes flanked by either congruent or incongruent distractor stimuli.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Relative to NT children, those with ASD were: (1) slower to react to spatially cued trials and (2) more error prone on executive (conflict) attention trials.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Young children with ASD have intact alerting attention, but less-efficient orienting and executive attention.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Human Development and Family Studies , College of Human Sciences, Texas Tech University , Lubbock , TX , USA and.
authors.forename: Rachna
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mutreja
authors.affiliation: b Department of Psychology , College of Arts and Sciences, Texas Tech University , Lubbock , TX , USA.
authors.forename: Curtis
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Craig
authors.affiliation: a Department of Human Development and Family Studies , College of Human Sciences, Texas Tech University , Lubbock , TX , USA and.
authors.forename: Michael W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: O'Boyle
mesh_terms: D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D000067877:Autism Spectrum Disorder / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003463:Cues; D056344:Executive Function / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D009949:Orientation / Q000502:physiology; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology
keywords: Attention; attention networks; autism; executive function; orienting