Autistic traits are associated with lower perceived executive function but not poorer executive function task performance in the general population: complementary meta-analytic evidence.

Most participants were young adults, so the results may not apply to older adults or very young children. The studies were mostly cross-sectional, meaning they looked at one point in time, so it is unclear how these relationships change over years. Many studies relied on self-reports for both autistic traits and executive function, which can exaggerate the link due to shared biases. The analysis focused mostly on 'cool' executive functions (neutral tasks), with very little data on 'hot' executive functions (emotional or motivational tasks).

The paper is supported by non-U.S. government funding. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.

Do not conclude that people with high autistic traits have no executive function problems. The study shows they perform well on specific laboratory tasks, but they still report significant difficulties in daily life, which may reflect real-world challenges not captured by simple tasks.