Brief Report: Examining Executive and Social Functioning in Elementary-Aged Children with Autism.
Laura MacMullen Freeman, Jill Locke, Erin Rotheram-Fuller and 1 others
PMID 28260182WHAT IT FOUND
In 23 elementary-aged children with autism, teacher-rated poorer initiation and working memory related to more solitary play, and better planning related to more joint play; better test-based switching and inhibition also related to more solitary play.
Key findings
01Teacher-rated poorer initiation and working memory were related to more time spent in solitary play, and better planning and organization were related to more joint engagement.
02Among performance-based executive measures, only the inhibition-switching task was related to social functioning, and better performance was related to more solitary play.
03Peer-reported friendship nominations and rejections were not related to performance-based or teacher-reported executive functioning.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
Only 23 children were analysed after six exclusions for IQ below 65, and sample size varied across measures. All children had IQ scores of 65 or higher and were included in general education for at least 80% of the school day, so results may not apply to children with lower cognitive ability or less classroom inclusion. There was no typically developing comparison sample. Many tests were run, increasing the chance of false-positive findings. Friendship nominations and rejections were not related to executive-function measures, so not all social outcomes supported the executive-function links.
The easy way to misread this
Do not treat the executive-function links as proof that teaching these skills improves social play. The study measured associations in 23 children, not an intervention, and peer friendship nominations were not related to executive-function scores.