Imitation problems are commonly reported in children with an autism spectrum disorder. However, it has not yet been determined whether imitation problems persist into young adulthood. In this study, we investigated imitation skills of 20 intellectually able young adults with autism spectrum disorder relative to 19 age-matched neurotypical adults.…

We re-evaluate conclusions about disfluency production in high-functioning forms of autism spectrum disorder (HFA). Previous studies examined individuals with HFA to address a theoretical question regarding speaker- and listener-oriented disfluencies. Individuals with HFA tend to be self-centric and have poor pragmatic language skills, and should…

Little is known about the relation between cognitive processes and imagination and whether this relation differs between neurotypically developing children and children with autism. To address this issue, we administered a cognitive task battery and Karmiloff-Smith's drawing task, which requires children to draw imaginative people and houses. For…

Formal thought disorder (FTD) is a disruption in the flow of thought and a common feature in psychotic disorders and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Executive dysfunction has often been associated with FTD, yet for ASD convincing evidence is lacking. This study investigated FTD and three core executive functions in 50 young children and…

This study examined the effects of a 12-week physical activity intervention on the motor skill proficiency and executive function of 22 boys (aged 9.08 ± 1.75 years) with autism spectrum disorder. In Phase I of the 12 weeks, 11 boys with autism spectrum disorder (Group A) received the intervention, whereas the other 11 boys with autism spectrum…

Previously, a total of 121 children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) performed an adaptive working memory (WM)-training, an adaptive flexibility-training, or a non-adaptive control (mock)-training. Despite overall improvement, there were minor differences between the adaptive and mock-training conditions. Moreover, dropout was relatively…

Background: Autism is generally associated with poor functional outcome but little is known about predictors of quality of life, especially during early adulthood. This study was conducted to assess subjective quality of life during early adulthood in high-functioning autism spectrum disorder and its relation with self-regulating abilities.…

Background: Executive functioning (EF) is important for adequate behavioural functioning and crucial for explaining symptoms of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in individuals with normal intelligence, but is scarcely studied in individuals with ASD and intellectual disabilities (ID). We therefore study EF in an ID population by comparing…

Previous research has clearly demonstrated that autism spectrum disorder (ASD) involves deficits in multiple neuropsychological functions, such as executive function (EF) and theory of mind (ToM). A conceptual distinction is commonly made between cool and hot EF. In ASD, continued attention has been paid to the cool areas of executive dysfunction.…

College attendance is increasing for students who have an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), yet a dearth of literature exists about their progress in postsecondary education. This study describes a group of college students who have the formal diagnosis of an ASD to uncover factors related to their academic performance. Twenty-three first-year…

Impairments in cognitive flexibility have been used to characterize the neuropsychological presentation of persons with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Previous studies have yielded mixed results. Our objective was to systematically review the sensitivity of cognitive flexibility measures in ASD using quantitative methods employed by…

Numerous research groups have consistently called for increased rigor within the evaluation of social programming to better understand pivotal factors to treatment outcomes. The underwhelming data on the essential features of social competence programs for students with behavior challenges may, in part, be attributed to the manner by which…

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is an aetiologically complex neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by deficits in social functioning. Children with ASD display a wide range of social competence and more variability in social domains as compared with either communication or repetitive behaviour domains. There is limited understanding of factors…

The aim of this study was to identify specific cognitive abilities that predict functional outcome in high-functioning adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and to clarify the contribution of those abilities and their relationships. In total, 41 adults with ASD performed cognitive tasks in a broad range of neuro- and social cognitive…