Attention, Executive Function, and Response Inhibition in Autism Spectrum Disorders

Background:

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) involve impairment of attention and executive

functioning. ASD develop at an early age and may affect social, communicative and cognitive development (Sigman, Spence, & Wang, 2006). ASD involves restrictive, repetitive behaviors and social and communicative deficits. ASD usually appears within the first three years of life (Johnson & Myers, 2007). Recent research estimates six per one thousand individuals have ASD. ASD is more prevalent with a 4.3 to one male to female ratio (Newschaffer et al., 2007). Between fifty and seventy percent of individuals with ASD have an intelligence quotient under 70 (Sigman et al., 2006).

Attention is a key cognitive component in learning and cognition. Attention relates to the ability to focus selectively and maintain concentration. Learning is most effective when one is attentive. Poor attention can be a sign of behavior disorders and learning related disorders. Attentional problems are also becoming detectable at a younger age and have been found to correlate with low academic achievement. Thus, attention is an important part of a cognitive system which is crucial to learning.

Executive functioning refers to processes such as planning, inhibition, initiation, mental flexibility, monitoring behavior, set-shifting, working memory and impulse control. ASD is a neurodevelopmental condition that involves impairments in executive function.

Objectives:

The current study aimed to investigate cognitive abilities between individuals with and without ASD. The study looked at attention, inhibition, planning, and spatial reasoning. Individuals with ASD are unique in their abilities and this study sought to explore these cognitive skills and the impact on learning.

Methods:

The Child Attention Network Test (ANT), a Spatial Reasoning Task, the Tower of Hanoi, and the Directional Stroop Test were used to test different cognitive abilities including attention, spatial reasoning, planning and inhibition respectively in both ASD and neurotypically developing individuals. Fifty-eight non-ASD, neurotypical children and fifteen children with ASD between the ages of five and eleven performed all four tasks.

Results:

Children with ASD showed low orient attention reaction times, low executive attention accuracy, low inhibition accuracy, quicker reaction time on the inhibition task, and poor accuracy and longer reaction times on the abstract reasoning task.

Conclusions:

The current study used the child ANT on an ASD sample, which has not been previously done. The findings indicate areas of cognitive weaknesses in individuals with ASD and how that may contribute to poor academic achievement. Furthermore, the findings provide possible strategies on improving performance such as direct instruction, increased time, and cues.

Another outcome from this study is the evidence of learned helplessness in individuals with ASD. Learned helplessness is a problem which parents and educators need to address. When students with ASD are unable to perform a task, they seek help and give up on themselves on succeeding at the task. Learned helplessness is a result of lack of self-confidence, lack of motivation, poor problem solving, poor attention and a feeling of hopelessness. This may result in students falling behind in school.