Sex as a Moderator Between Parent Ratings of Executive Dysfunction and Social Difficulties in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Tonje Torske; Terje Nærland; Daniel S Quintana; Ruth Elizabeth Hypher; Anett Kaale; Anne Lise Høyland; Sigrun Hope; Jarle Johannessen; Merete G Øie; Ole A Andreassen

doi:10.1007/s10803-022-05629-5

Sex as a Moderator Between Parent Ratings of Executive Dysfunction and Social Difficulties in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder

J Autism Dev Disord. 2023 Oct;53(10):3847-3859. doi: 10.1007/s10803-022-05629-5. Epub 2022 Jul 15.

Authors

Tonje Torske^{1

2}, Terje Nærland^{3

4}, Daniel S Quintana^{5

3

4

6}, Ruth Elizabeth Hypher^{7

8}, Anett Kaale^{3

9}, Anne Lise Høyland^{10

11}, Sigrun Hope^{6

12}, Jarle Johannessen^{3

13}, Merete G Øie^{5

14}, Ole A Andreassen^{4

6}

Affiliations

¹ Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Vestre Viken Hospital Trust, Postboks 800, 3004, Drammen, Norway. tonje.torske@vestreviken.no.
² Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway. tonje.torske@vestreviken.no.
³ NevSom Department of Rare Disorders and Disabilities, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway.
⁴ K.G. Jebsen Center for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
⁵ Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
⁶ NORMENT, University of Oslo and Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway.
⁷ Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway.
⁸ Division of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Department of Clinical Neurosciences for Children, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway.
⁹ Department of Special Needs Education, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
¹⁰ Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Mental Health, Regional Centre for Child and Youth Mental Health and Child Welfare, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
¹¹ Department of Pediatrics, St. Olav Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway.
¹² Department of Neurohabilitation, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway.
¹³ Department of Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
¹⁴ Research Department, Innlandet Hospital Trust, Lillehammer, Norway.

Abstract

Girls and boys might differ in autistic symptoms and associated cognitive difficulties such as executive function (EF). We investigated sex differences in the relationship between parent rated EF and autistic symptoms in 116 children and adolescents (25 girls) aged 5-19 years with an intelligence quotient above 70 and an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis. They were rated with the behavior rating inventory of executive function (BRIEF) and the autism diagnostic interview revised (ADI-R). We found a positive association between EF and the ADI-R domains of reciprocal social interaction (p < 0.001) and communication (p = 0.001) in girls, while these relationships were small and non-significant in boys. Our results provide a greater understanding of the sex-specific characteristics of children and adolescents with ASD.

Keywords: Autism diagnostic interview revised (ADI-R); Autism spectrum disorder; Behavior rating inventory of executive function (BRIEF); Executive function; Sex differences.

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Autism Spectrum Disorder* / psychology
Child
Communication
Executive Function
Female
Humans
Intelligence Tests
Male
Parents

Abstract

MeSH terms

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