Flexibility in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD): Inconsistency between neuropsychological tests and parent-based rating scales

Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology

Volumn 34, Issue 7, 2012, Pages 714-723

  Teunisse, Jan Pieter ^a,b,d   Roelofs, Renée L ^a   Verhoeven, Elisabeth W M ^a,b   Cuppen, Linda ^b   Mol, Joke ^c   Berger, Hans J C ^a  

^a RADBOUD UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER   (Netherlands)

^b Department of Research and Development   (Netherlands)

^c Kristallis Scholengroep   (Netherlands)

^d HAN UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES   (Netherlands)

Author keywords

Autism; Cognition; Executive functions; Flexibility; Validity

Indexed keywords

ADOLESCENT; ARTICLE; AUTISM; CHILD; EXECUTIVE FUNCTION; HUMAN; INTELLIGENCE; MALE; NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL TEST; PARENT; PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECT;

ADOLESCENT; CHILD; CHILD DEVELOPMENT DISORDERS, PERVASIVE; EXECUTIVE FUNCTION; HUMANS; INTELLIGENCE; MALE; NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL TESTS; PARENTS;

EID: 84865032197     PISSN: 13803395     EISSN: 1744411X     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/13803395.2012.670209     Document Type: Article

References (57)

1. Achenbach, T. M., and, Rescorla, L. A. 2001. Manual for the ASEBA school-age forms & profiles, Burlington, VT: University of Vermont, Research Center for Children, Youth, & Families.
2. American Psychiatric Association. 1994. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 4th, Washington, DC: Author.
3. Amieva, H., Phillips, L., and, Della, S. S. 2003. Behavioral dysexecutive symptoms in normal aging. Brain and Cognition, 53: 129-132.
4. Ardila, A., Galeano, L. M., and, Rosselli, M. 1998. Toward a model of neuropsychological activity. Neuropsychology Review, 8: 171-190.
5. Ardila, A., Pineda, D., and, Rosselli, M. 2000. Correlation between intelligence test scores and executive function measures. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 15: 31-36.
6. Arffa, S. 2007. The relationship of intelligence to executive function and non-executive function measures in a sample of average, above average, and gifted youth. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 22: 969-978.
7. Arffa, S., Lovell, M., Podell, K., and, Goldberg, E. 1998. Wisconsin Card Sorting Test performance in above average and superior school children: Relationship to intelligence and age. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 13: 713-720.
8. Autisme Team Gelderland. 2005. Vragenlijst ten behoeve van diagnostisch onderzoek bij autisme spectrum stoornissen [Autism spectrum disorder diagnostic questionnaire], Arnhem, The Netherlands: Samenwerkingsverband Autisme Gelderland.
9. Baron-Cohen, S., Wheelwright, S., Skinner, R., Martin, J., and, Clubley, E. 2001. The autism-spectrum quotient (AQ): Evidence from Asperger syndrome/high-functioning autism, males and females, scientists and mathematicians. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 31: 5-17.
10. Berg, E. 1948. A simple objective technique for measuring flexibility of thinking. Journal of General Psychology, 39: 15-22.
11. Berger, H. J. C., Aerts, F. H. T. M., van Spaendonck, K. P. M., Cools, A. R., and, Teunisse, J. P. 2003. Central coherence and cognitive shifting in relation to social improvement in high-functioning young adults with autism. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 25: 502-511.
12. Berger, H. J. C, van Spaendonck, K. P. M., Horstink, M. W. I. M., Buytenhuijs, E. L., Lammers, P. W. J. M., and, Cools, A. R. 1993. Cognitive shifting as a predictor of progress in social understanding in high-functioning adolescents with autism: A prospective study. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 23: 341-359.
13. Bogod, N. M., Mateer, C. A., and, MacDonald, S. W. S. 2003. Self-awareness after traumatic brain injury: A comparison of measures and their relationship to executive functions. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 9: 450-458.
14. Boone, K. B., Ghaffarian, S., Lesser, I. M., and, Hill-Gutierrez, E. 1993. Wisconsin Card Sorting Test performance in healthy, older adults: Relationship to age, sex, education, and IQ. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 49: 54-60.
15. Brandner, V. 1960. Dynamik und Ineinanderwirken von Einstellungen [Dynamics and interrelation of mental sets]. Zeitschrift fur Experimentelle und Angewandte Psychologie, 7: 663-689.
16. Burgess, P. W., Alderman, N., Evans, J., Emslie, H., and, Wilson, B. A. 1998. The ecological validity of tests of executive function. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 4: 547-558.
17. Chaytor, N., and, Schmitter-Edgecombe, M. 2003. The ecological validity of neuropsychological tests: A review of the literature on everyday cognitive skills. Neuropsychology Review, 13: 181-197.
18. Chaytor, N., Schmitter-Edgecombe, M., and, Burr, R. 2006. Improving the ecological validity of executive functioning assessment. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 21: 217-227.
19. Chelune, G. J., and, Thompson, L. L. 1987. Evaluation of the general sensitivity of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test among younger and older children. Developmental Neuropsychology, 3: 81-89.
20. De Los Reyes, A., and, Kazdin, A. E. 2005. Informant discrepancies in the assessment of childhood psychopathology: A critical review, theoretical framework, and recommendations for further study. Psychological Bulletin, 131: 483-509.
21. Didden, R., Sigafoos, J., Green, V. A., Korzilius, H., Mouws, C., Lancioni, G. E. 2008. Behavioural flexibility in individuals with Angelman syndrome, Down syndrome, non-specific intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 52: 503-509.
22. Donders, J., and, Kirsch, N. 1991. Nature and implications of selective impairment on the Booklet Category Test and Wisconsin Card Sorting Test. Clinical Neuropsychologist, 5: 78-82.
23. Downes, J. J., Roberts, A. C., Sahakian, B. J., Evenden, J. L., Morris, R. G., and, Robbins, T. W. 1989. Impaired extra-dimensional shift performance in medicated and unmedicated Parkinson's disease: Evidence for a specific attentional dysfunction. Neuropsychologia, 27: 1329-1343.
24. Geurts, H. M., Corbett, B., and, Solomon, M. 2009. The paradox of cognitive flexibility in autism. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 13: 74-82.
25. Gioia, G. A., Isquith, P. K., Guy, S. C., and, Kenworthy, L. 2000. Behavior rating inventory of executive function. Child Neuropsychology, 6: 235-238.
26. Gioia, G. A., Isquith, P. K., Retzlaff, P. D., and, Espy, K. A. 2002. Confirmatory factor analysis of the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) in a clinical sample. Child Neuropsychology, 8: 249-257.
27. Green, V., Sigafoos, J., Pituch, K., Itchon, J., O'Reilly, M., and, Lancioni, G. 2006. Assessing behavioral flexibility in individuals with developmental disorders. Focus on Autism and other Developmental Disabilities, 21: 230-236.
28. Heaton, R. K. 1981. Wisconsin Card Sorting Test manual, Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
29. Heaton, R. K., Chelune, G. J., Talley, J. L., Kay, G. G., and, Curtiss, G. 1993. Wisconsin Card Sorting Test manual: Revised and extended, Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
30. Hughes, C., Russell, J., and, Robbins, T. W. 1994. Evidence for executive dysfunction in autism. Neuropsychologia, 32: 477-492.
31. Kanner, L. 1943. Autistic disturbances of affective contact. Nervous Child, 2: 217-250.
32. Leyfer, O. V., Folstein, S. E., Bacalman, S., Davis, N. O., Dinh, E., Morgan, J., and, al, et. 2006. Comorbid psychiatric disorders in children with autism: Interview development and rates of disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 36: 849-861.
33. Liss, M., Fein, D., Allen, D., Dunn, M., Feinstein, C., Morris, R., and, al, et. 2001. Executive functioning in high-functioning children with autism. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, and Allied Disciplines, 42: 261-270.
34. Lombardo, M., Barnes, J., Wheelwright, S., and, Baron-Cohen, S. 2007. Self-referential cognition and empathy in autism, Cambridge, UK: University of Cambridge, Autism Research Centre, Department of Psychiatry.
35. Mahone, E. M., Cirino, P. T., Cutting, L. E., Cerrone, P. M., Hagelthorn, K. M., Hiemenz, J. R. 2002. Validity of the behavior rating inventory of executive function in children with ADHD and/or Tourette syndrome. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 17: 643-662.
36. Mitchell, P., and, O'Keefe, K. 2008. Brief report: Do individuals with autism spectrum disorder think they know their own minds?. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 38: 1591-1597.
37. Miyake, A., Friedman, N. P., Emerson, M. J., Witzki, A. H., Howerter, A., and, Wager, T. D. 2000. The unity and diversity of executive functions and their contributions to complex frontal lobe tasks: A latent variable analysis. Cognitive Psychology, 41: 49-100.
38. Norris, G., and, Tate, R. 2000. The behavioural assessment of the dysexecutive syndrome (BADS): Ecological, concurrent and construct validity. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 10: 33-45.
39. Ozonoff, S. 1995. Reliability and validity of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test in studies of autism. Neuropsychology, 9: 491-500.
40. Ozonoff, S. 1997. Causal mechanisms of autism: Unifying perspectives from an information-processing framework. In Handbook of autism and pervasive developmental disorders, Edited by: Cohen, D. and Volkmar, F. New York, NY: Wiley.
41. Ozonoff, S. 1998. Assessment and remediation of executive dysfunction in autism and Asperger syndrome. In Asperger syndrome or high-functioning autism?, Edited by: Schopler, E., Mesibov, G. and Kunce, L. New York, NY: Plenum Press.
42. Peters-Scheffers, N., Didden, R., Green, V., Sigafoos, J., Korzilius, H., Pituch, K. 2008. The Behavioral Flexibility Rating Scale-Revised (BFRS-R): Factor analysis, internal consistency, inter-rater and intra-rater reliability, and convergent validity. Research in Developmental Disorders, 29: 398-407.
43. Riccio, C. A., Hall, J., Morgan, A., Hynd, G. W., Gonzalez, J. J., and, Marshall, R. M. 1994. Executive function and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test: Relationship with behavioral ratings and cognitive ability. Developmental Neuropsychology, 10: 215-229.
44. Rosenthal, R., and, Jacobson, L. 1966. Teachers' expectancies: Determinants of pupils' IQ gains. Psychological Reports, 19: 115-118.
45. Sbordone, R. 1996. Ecological validity: Some critical issues for the neuropsychologists. In Ecological validity of neuropsychological testing, Edited by: Sbordone, R. and Long, C. Delray Beach, FL: St. Lucie Press.
46. Schreibman, L. 2000. Intensive behavioral/psychoeducational treatments for autism: Research needs and future directions. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 30: 373-378.
47. Smidts, D., and, Huizinga, M. 2009. BRIEF executieve functies gedragsvragenlijst [BRIEF executive functioning questionnaire]. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Hogrefe Uitgevers.
48. Teunisse, J. P., Cools, A. R., van Spaendonck, K. P. M., Aerts, F. H. T. M., and, Berger, H. J. C. 2001. Cognitive styles in high-functioning adolescents with autistic disorder. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 31: 55-66.
49. Thorndike, E. L. 1920. A constant error in psychological ratings. Journal of Applied Psychology, 4: 25-29.
50. Toichi, M., Kamio, Y., Okada, T., Sakihama, M., Youngstrom, E. A., Findling, R. L. 2002. A lack of self-consciousness in autism. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 159: 1422-1424.
51. Toplak, M. E., Bucciarelli, S. M., Jain, U., and, Tannock, R. 2009. Executive functions: Performance-based measures and the behavior rating inventory of executive function (BRIEF) in adolescents with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Child Neuropsychology, 15: 53-72.
52. van Spaendonck, K. P. M., Berger, H. J. C., Horstink, M. W. I. M., Buytenhuijs, E. L., and, Cools, A. R. 1993. Impaired cognitive shifting in parkinsonian patients on anticholinergic therapy. Neuropsychologia, 31: 407-411.
53. Verhulst, F., van der Ende, J., and, Koot, H. 1996. Handleiding voor de CBCL/4-18 [Manual of the CBCL/4-18]. Rotterdam, The Netherlands: Sophia Kinderziekenhuis/Academisch Ziekenhuis Rotterdam/Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam.
54. Vriezen, E. R., and, Pigott, S. E. 2002. The relationship between parental report on the BRIEF and performance-based measures of executive function in children with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury. Child Neuropsychology, 8: 296-303.
55. nl, London, UK: Harcourt Assessment.
56. Welsh, M. C., Pennington, B. F., and, Groisser, D. B. 1991. A normative-developmental study of executive function: A window on prefrontal function in children. Developmental Neuropsychology, 7: 131-149.
57. Yerys, B. E., Wallace, G. L., Harrison, B., Celano, M. J., Giedd, J. N., and, Kenworthy, L. E. 2009. Set-shifting in children with autism spectrum disorders: Reversal shifting deficits on the Intradimensional/Extradimensional Shift Test correlate with repetitive behaviors. Autism, 13: 523-538.