Self-reported Prospective and Retrospective Memory Among Middle Aged and Older Autistic and Non-autistic People.
Rebecca A Charlton, Goldie A McQuaid, Nancy Raitano Lee and 1 others
PMID 37751094WHAT IT FOUND
Middle-aged and older autistic adults reported more memory difficulties than matched non-autistic peers.
However, older autistic adults reported fewer problems than younger autistic adults, while age showed no such association in the non-autistic group.
Key findings
01Autistic adults self-reported more memory difficulties than non-autistic adults.
02The pattern of memory problems across types, cues, and delays was similar between autistic and non-autistic groups, with no significant interactions.
03Older age was associated with fewer self-reported memory problems in the autistic group but not in the non-autistic group.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study relies on self-report and does not include objective memory performance testing, so it is unclear if these perceptions match actual cognitive ability. Intellectual ability was not measured, and the samples likely represent higher-functioning individuals, limiting generalisability to those with co-occurring intellectual disability. The autistic and non-autistic groups were recruited from different studies, introducing potential differences in recruitment strategy and sample characteristics.
Declared interests
The authors report no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that older autistic adults have better objective memory than their younger counterparts. The finding is based on self-report only, and the authors note it is unclear whether this reflects actual stability or better management of typical age-related changes.