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Cognitive and Developmental Functions in Autistic and Non-Autistic Children and Adolescents: Evidence from the
Salome D Odermatt1, Wenke Möhring1,2, Silvia Grieder1
1Department of Psychology, University of Basel, 4055 Basel, Switzerland.
Journal of Intelligence
|November 22, 2022
Summary
Autistic children and adolescents often exhibit developmental delays, particularly in motor and language skills, according to the Intelligence and Development Scales-2 (IDS-2) assessment. These findings suggest motor skills may be overlooked in autism diagnosis and treatment.
Area of Science:
- Neurodevelopmental Disorders
- Developmental Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
Background:
- Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is characterized by core social communication deficits and restricted, repetitive behaviors.
- Cognitive and developmental impairments beyond core symptoms are common in autistic individuals.
- Existing intelligence and developmental tests show variable differential validity for assessing autistic populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate cognitive and developmental functions in autistic and non-autistic children and adolescents.
- To compare performance on the Intelligence and Development Scales-2 (IDS-2) between autistic and neurotypical samples.
- To identify specific developmental domains that may require more attention in autism assessment and intervention.
Main Methods:
- A matched-pair design comparing 43 autistic and 43 non-autistic participants (mean age ~12.4 years).
- Utilized the Intelligence and Development Scales-2 (IDS-2) to assess cognitive (intelligence, executive functions) and developmental (psychomotor, social-emotional, basic skills, motivation, participation) functions.
- Participants were matched for age, sex, and maternal education.
Main Results:
- Autistic participants demonstrated significantly lower mean scores in psychomotor skills, language skills, and participation during testing compared to controls.
- No significant differences were found in social-emotional skills, potentially due to compensatory effects of average cognitive abilities.
- Intelligence and executive functions were not detailed in the provided abstract excerpt but were assessed.
Conclusions:
- The IDS-2 highlights particular impairments in motor and language skills in autistic individuals, beyond core symptoms.
- Motor skills may be underemphasized in current autism diagnosis and treatment approaches.
- Further attention to motor and language development is recommended for comprehensive autism care.
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