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12-06-2019 | Original Paper

Executive Functions and Symptom Severity in an Italian Sample of Intellectually Able Preschoolers with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Auteurs: Giovanni Valeri, Laura Casula, Eleonora Napoli, Paolo Stievano, Barbara Trimarco, Stefano Vicari, Teresa Gloria Scalisi

Gepubliceerd in: Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders | Uitgave 9/2020

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Abstract

A novel battery (BAFE; Valeri et al. 2015) was used in order to assess three executive function (EF) abilities (working memory, inhibition and shifting) in a sample of 27 intellectually able preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) compared with 27 typically developing children matched on age and nonverbal IQ. Differences in EF skills were analyzed in participants with distinct ASD symptom severity. Children with ASD performed worse than typical controls on both set-shifting and inhibition, but not on visuo-spatial working memory. Additionally, children with more severe ASD symptoms showed a worse performance on inhibition than children with milder symptoms. These results confirm the presence of EF deficits and highlight a link between ASD symptoms and EF impairments in preschool age.
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Metagegevens
Titel
Executive Functions and Symptom Severity in an Italian Sample of Intellectually Able Preschoolers with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Auteurs
Giovanni Valeri
Laura Casula
Eleonora Napoli
Paolo Stievano
Barbara Trimarco
Stefano Vicari
Teresa Gloria Scalisi
Publicatiedatum
12-06-2019
Uitgeverij
Springer US
Gepubliceerd in
Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders / Uitgave 9/2020
Print ISSN: 0162-3257
Elektronisch ISSN: 1573-3432
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-019-04102-0