Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Executive and motor function in children with autism spectrum disorder

  • Research Article
  • Published:
Cognitive Processing Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between executive function, mainly attention and impulse control, and motor function impairment in children with ASD. Fifteen children with ASD (ages 8–14 years) were examined on their executive function using the Conners continuous performance test-3 and motor function using the movement assessment battery for children-2 (MABC-2). It was found that children with ASD were delayed on executive and motor function. This means that those effects were also observed in male children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) who had similar characteristics as the participants in the study. This study may have practical implications in the relationship between executive function and motor performance in children with ASD and for clinicians and educators working with children with ASD. Furthermore, the findings suggest that variability in reaction time may be a useful predictor of motor skill performance in children with ASD and may reflect underlying difficulties in executive function and future research is suggested.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • American Psychiatric Association (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed. DSM-IV-TR). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.

  • Ali JB, Charman T, Johnson MH, Jones EJ & BASIS/STAARS Team (2020) Early motor differences in infants at elevated likelihood of autism spectrum disorder and/or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. J Autism Dev Disord 50:4367–4384. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-020-04489-1

  • Bhat A (2020) Is motor impairment in autism spectrum disorder (asd) distinct from developmental coordination disorder (dcd)? A report from the SPARK study. Phys Therapy. https://doi.org/10.1093/ptj/pzz190

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bishop SL, Thurm A, Farmer C (2015) Measurement of nonverbal IQ in autism spectrum disorder: scores in young adulthood compared to early childhood. J Autism Dev Disord 45(4):966–974

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Brady D, Saklofske D, Schwean V, Montgomery J, Thorne K, McCrimmon A (2017) Executive functions in young adults with autism spectrum disorder. Focus Autism Other Dev Disabil 32(1):31–43. https://doi.org/10.1177/1088357615609396

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2022) Data & statistics on autism spectrum disorder. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/data.html

  • Conners C (2014) Conners continuous performance test, 3rd edn. Multi-Health Systems Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Corbett BA, Constantine LJ, Hendren R, Rocke D, Ozonoff S (2009) Examining executive functioning in children with autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and typical development. Psychiatry Res 166(2–3):210–222. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2008.08.012

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Cox S, Cox D, Kofler M, Moncriel M, Johnson R, Lambert A, Reeve R (2016) Driving simulator performance in novice drivers with autism spectrum disorder: the role of executive functions and basic motor skills. J Autism Dev Disord 46:1379–1391. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-015-2677-1

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Field A (2013) Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics, 4th edn. Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks

    Google Scholar 

  • Fournier K, Kimberg C, Radonovich K, Tillman M, Chow J, Lewis M, Hass C (2010) Decreased static and dynamic postural control in children with autism spectrum disorders. Gait Posture 32(1):6–9

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Fox J (2015) Applied regression analysis and generalized linear models, 3rd edn. Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks

    Google Scholar 

  • Fox J (2017) Bootstrapping regression models in R: an appendix to an R companion to applied regression, 2nd ed. Retrieved from https://socialsciences.mcmaster.ca/jfox/Books/Companion/appendix/Appendix- Bootstrapping.pdf

  • Green et al (2019) Motor abilities predict adaptive behavior and daily living skills in children with autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord 49(4):1508–1523

    Google Scholar 

  • Henderson SE, Sugden DA, Barnett A (2007) Movement assessment battery for children, 2nd edn. Harcourt Assessment, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Hilton C, Cumpata K, Klohr C, Gaetke S, Artner A, Johnson H, Dobbs S (2014) Effects of exergaming on executive function and motor skills in children with autismspectrum disorder: a pilot study. Am J Occup Ther 68:57–65. https://doi.org/10.5014/ajot.2014.008664

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hocking DR, Bradshaw JL, Naughton G (2012) Motor difficulties in children with autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a pilot study. Hum Mov Sci 31(1):202–220

    Google Scholar 

  • Kaur et al (2020) The relationship between motor skills, social communication, and cognitive development in children with autism spectrum disorder: a systematic review. Autism Res 13(6):962–978

    Google Scholar 

  • Kim Y, So W (2021) Relationship between motor skills and cognitive functions in children with autism spectrum disorder. J Phys Ther Sci 33(7):380–383

    Google Scholar 

  • Liu T (2013) Sensory processing and motor skill performance in elementary school children with autism spectrum disorder. Percept Mot Skills 116:197–209

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Liu T, Breslin C (2013) The effect of a picture activity schedule on performance of the MABC-2 for children with autism spectrum disorder. Res Q Exerc Sport 84:206–212

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • May T, Rinehart NJ, Wilding J, Cornish K (2015) Attention and basic literacy and numeracy in children with autism spectrum disorder: a one-year follow-up study. Res Autism Spectr Disord 9:193–201

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mazefsky CA, Herrington J, Siegel M, Scarpa A, Maddox BB, Scahill L, White SW (2013) The role of emotion regulation in autism spectrum disorder. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 52(7):679–688

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • McHugh ML (2020) Inter-rater reliability: the kappa statistic. Psychol Assess 32(4):380–385. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000750

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McPartland JC, Volkmar FR (2012) Autism and related disorders. Child and adolescent psychiatry. Blackwell Publishing Ltd, pp 551–570

    Google Scholar 

  • Mukaka MM (2012) A guide to appropriate use of correlation coefficient in medical research. Malawi Med J 24(3):69–71

    CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Nordin A, Ismail J, Nor N (2021) Motor development in children with autism spectrum disorder. Front Pediatr 9:598276. https://doi.org/10.3389/fped.2021.598276

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Papagiannopoulou EA, Charman T, Johnson MH, Jones EJ (2020) A prospective study of the emergence of early behavioral signs of autism. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 59(5):618–626

    Google Scholar 

  • Provost B, Heimeri S, Lopez B (2007) Levels of gross and fine motor development in young children with autism spectrum disorder. Phys Occup Ther Pediatr 27(3):21–36

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rutter ML, Bailey A, Lord C (2003) The social communication questionnaire: manual. Western Psychological Services

    Google Scholar 

  • Sachse M, Schlitt S, Hainz D, Ciaramidaro A, Schirman S, Walter H, Poustka F, Bolte S, Freitag C (2012) Executive and visuo-motor function in adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord 43:1222–1235. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-012-1668-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schurink J, Hartman E, Scherder E, Houwen S, Visscher C (2012) Relationship between motor and executive functioning in school-age children with pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified. Res Autism Spectr Disord 6:726–732. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rasd.2011.10.013

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shire SY, Chang YC, Shih W, Braverman J (2020) Fine and gross motor skills in children with autism spectrum disorder: a comprehensive review. Autism Res 13(6):963–981

    Google Scholar 

  • Srinivasan SM, Pescatello LS, Bhat AN (2018) Correlates of motor performance in children with autism spectrum disorder. Autism Res 11(1):57–66

    Google Scholar 

  • St. John T, Estes AM, Dager SR, Kostopoulos P, Wolff JJ, Pandey J, Piven J (2016) Emerging executive functioning and motor development in infants at high and low risk for autism spectrum disorder. Front Psychol 7:1016. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01016

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Steele SD, Minshew NJ, Luna B, Sweeney JA (2007) Spatial working memory deficits in autism. J Autism Dev Disord 37:605–612

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stuss D, Knight R (2002) Principles of frontal lobe function. Oxford University Press, Oxford

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Tye C, Runicles AK, Whitehouse AJ, Alvares GA, Varcin KJ (2014) Executive functioning and social-communication deficits in young people with autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord 44(4):883–892. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-013-1950-7

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang L, Petrulla V, Zampella C, Waller R, Schultz R (2022) Gross motor impairment and its relation to social skills in autism spectrum disorder: a systematic review and two meta-analyses. Psychol Bull. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000358

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Whyatt C, Craig C (2012) Motor skills in children aged 7–10 years, diagnosed with autism sprectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord 42:1799–1809. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-011-1421-8

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ziermans T, Swaab H, Stockman A, de Bruin E, van Rijn S (2017) Formal thought disorder and executive functioning in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder: old leads and new avenues. J Autism Dev Disord 47:1756–1768. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-017-3104-6

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health and Human Performance, Texas State University, 601 University Dr., San Marcos, TX, 78666, USA

    Ting Liu, Morgan Tongish & Yumeng Li

  2. Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

    Paola Matiko Martins Okuda

Authors
  1. Ting Liu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Morgan Tongish
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Yumeng Li
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Paola Matiko Martins Okuda
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ting Liu.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest to disclose.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in this study involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional review board and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all participants include in the study.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Editors: Massimiliano Palmiero (University of Teramo), Irene León (International University of La Rioja); Reviewers: Nancy Getchell (University of Delaware), Francesco Iani (University of Turin).

Appendix

Appendix

See Table 5.

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Liu, T., Tongish, M., Li, Y. et al. Executive and motor function in children with autism spectrum disorder. Cogn Process 24, 537–547 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10339-023-01156-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10339-023-01156-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation