Flexibility in young people with autism spectrum disorders on a card sort task

Abstract

Adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have shown deficits in switching between rules governing their behaviour, as have high-functioning children with ASD. However, there are few studies of flexibility in lower-functioning children with ASD. The current study investigated this phenomenon with a group of low-functioning children with ASD compared to a mental-age-matched comparison group. The ASD group learned an initial discrimination task as quickly as the matched comparison group, but when the rule governing the discrimination was shifted, the comparison group learned the task with fewer errors, and made the discrimination more quickly than the groups with ASD. These findings suggest that low-functioning children with ASD do display the predicted deficits in extra-dimensional shift.

A preliminary study of self-reported food selectivity in adolescents and young adults with autism spectrum disorder

“…It is possible that food neophobia is one manifestation of broader anxiety or difficulties with novelty, so these individuals will also struggle with new situations in daily life (e.g., paying a store clerk for a purchased item). However, there may also be another factor, such as behavioral inflexibility, which is strongly associated with ASD (Granader, Wallace, Hardy, Yerys, et al, 2014; Yerys et al, 2009; D’Cruz et al, 2013; South et al, 2007; Reed et al, 2011) that mediates the observed correlation between food neophobia and lower daily living skills. Future research should seek to elucidate this potential connection.…”

“…Mealtime is also inherently variable, with most people regularly changing menus, utensils and dishes, and eating environments. Difficulties with managing novelty (Spratt, Nicholas, Brady, Carpenter, et al, 2012; Maes, Eling, Wezenberg, Vissers, et al, 2011), prototype formation and generalization (Klinger & Dawson, 2001; Gastgeb, Dundas, Minshew, & Strauss; 2012), and behavioral inflexibility and a need for sameness (Yerys, Wallace, Harrison, Celano, et al, 2009; D’Cruz, Ragozzino, Mosconi, Shrestha, et al, 2013; South, Ozonoff, & McMahon, 2007; Reed, Watts, & Truzoli, 2011) prime children with ASD to have feeding challenges. Sensory processing differences (Ben-Sasson, Hen, Fluss, Cermak, et al, 2009; Lane, Young, Baker, & Angley, 2010), oral motor impairments, (Dowell, Mahone, & Mostofsky, 2009; Dziuk, Gidley Larson, Apostu, Mahone et al, 2007), fine motor impairments (Green, Charman, Pickles, Chandler et al, 2009; Barron-Linnankoski, Reinvall, Lahervuori, Voutilainen, et al, 2014), and gastrointestinal problems (Kang, Wagner, & Ming, 2014; Coury, Ashwood, Fasano, Fuchs, et al, 2012; McElhanon, McCracken, Karpen, & Sharp, 2014) common in individuals ASD may also contribute to feeding challenges.…”

Performance on the dimensional change card sort and backward digit span by young children with autism without intellectual disability

“…Cross-sectional and longitudinal evidence suggests EF at 4–7 years predicted later theory of mind performance above and beyond verbal and nonverbal cognitive ability and initial theory of mind ability, while theory of mind did not predict later executive ability (Pellicano, 2007; 2010). Investigations of the relation between EF and repetitive symptoms have included a wide range of ages, executive tasks and measures of repetitive behaviors and, unsurprisingly, have yielded mixed results (Dichter et al, 2010; Lopez, Lincoln, Ozonoff, & Lai, 2005; Mosconi et al, 2009; Reed, Watts, & Truzoli, 2011; South, Ozonoff, & McMahon, 2007; Yerys et al, 2009). Except for Reed et al (2011), studies that reported a direct relation with EF measured lifetime repetitive symptoms, suggesting that behaviors present earlier in development may relate to current EF.…”

“…Investigations of the relation between EF and repetitive symptoms have included a wide range of ages, executive tasks and measures of repetitive behaviors and, unsurprisingly, have yielded mixed results (Dichter et al, 2010; Lopez, Lincoln, Ozonoff, & Lai, 2005; Mosconi et al, 2009; Reed, Watts, & Truzoli, 2011; South, Ozonoff, & McMahon, 2007; Yerys et al, 2009). Except for Reed et al (2011), studies that reported a direct relation with EF measured lifetime repetitive symptoms, suggesting that behaviors present earlier in development may relate to current EF. The only examination of EF and symptoms in the social and repetitive domains among 4–7 year olds with ASD without cognitive impairment did not detect relations (Pellicano et al, 2006), but raised the possibility that this could be due to reliance on only parent report of symptoms.…”

“…These tasks are appropriate for 6–7 year olds with established criteria for passing (Carlson, 2005; Cohen, 1997; Zelazo, 2006) and provide additional information about the uniformity of early EF deficits in ASD. We predicted less flexibility while switching rules during the DCCS task based on prior work with young children with ASD and intellectual impairment and older children with ASD without intellectual impairment (e.g., Colvert, Custance, & Swettenham, 2002; Geurts, Verté, Oosterlaan, Roeyers, & Sergeant, 2004; Reed et al, 2011; but see Dichter et al, 2010). Given the relatively spared verbal working memory ability among older individuals with ASD (Kenworthy et al, 2008), we anticipated spared performance.…”