ADHD symptoms and learning behaviors in children with ASD without intellectual disability. A mediation analysis of executive functions

Belen Rosello; Carmen Berenguer; Inmaculada Baixauli; Carla Colomer; Ana Miranda

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0207286

ADHD symptoms and learning behaviors in children with ASD without intellectual disability. A mediation analysis of executive functions

PLoS One. 2018 Nov 14;13(11):e0207286. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0207286. eCollection 2018.

Authors

Belen Rosello¹, Carmen Berenguer¹, Inmaculada Baixauli², Carla Colomer³, Ana Miranda¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, University of Valencia,Valencia, Spain.
² Faculty of Psychology, Teaching and Education Sciences, Catholic University of Valencia "San Vicente Mártir", Valencia, Spain.
³ Department of Education, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón de la Plana, Spain.

Abstract

In spite of its importance for education, the relationship between learning behaviors (LB), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms (ADHD) and executive functioning (EF) in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has hardly been explored. The first objective of the present study was to compare children with ASD without intellectual disability and children with typical development (TD) on ADHD symptoms and learning behaviors: Motivation/competence, attitude toward learning, persistence on the task, and strategy/flexibility. The second objective was to analyze the mediator role of behavioral regulation and metacognition components of EF between ADHD symptoms and learning behaviors in children with ASD. Participants were 89 children between 7 and 11 years old, 52 with ASD and 37 with TD, matched on age and intelligence. Their teachers filled out questionnaires assessing executive functioning as well as learning behaviors. Parents and teachers reported on inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity behaviors. Compared to children with TD, children with ASD presented significantly more ADHD symptoms and poorer learning behaviors. In addition, there were significant mediation effects of the behavioral regulation index (BRI) and metacognition index (MI) of EF, indicating that both are part of the route through which ADHD symptoms impact to learning behaviors of children with ASD.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / complications*
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / psychology
Autism Spectrum Disorder / complications*
Autism Spectrum Disorder / psychology
Child
Executive Function*
Female
Humans
Intellectual Disability / complications
Learning
Male
Motivation

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology (PSI2016-78109) and Universitat de València (PREDOC15-265889) to Professor Carmen Berenguer. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.