Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder of All Ages, Levels of Symptom Severity and General Cognitive Ability Display Low Processing Speed Index Scores Warranting Special Educational Assistance

R Feldmann,G Schulte-Körne,S Beimdiek,E Strittmatter,M Linnenbank

doi:10.1007/s10803-021-05249-5

Abstract

The processing speed index (PSI) of the Wechsler intelligence scale for children (WISC-IV) has been found to predict a child's level of academic functioning. The consistently reported PSI weakness in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) therefore warrants special assistance and attempts at compensation for the disadvantages associated with these children's low PSI. We investigated the association of PSI scores with age, general cognitive ability [as measured by full-scale IQ (FSIQ)], symptom severity and discrepancy between the WISC-IV indices verbal comprehension (VCI) and perceptual reasoning (PRI) in 101 school children with ASD. The PSI weakness in children with ASD was not related to age, FSIQ, VCI-PRI discrepancy or any of the symptom measures. These findings suggest that school children with ASD independent of their age, level of cognitive ability, VCI-PRI profile and most notably independent of their symptom severity should be entitled to special assistance and compensation in educational settings.

Highlights

Intellectual functioning is one of the most extensively studied aspects in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD; Oliveras-Rentas et al, 2012)
The aim of the present study is to investigate whether age, general cognitive ability, and symptom severity [as measured by the autism diagnostic observation schedule (ADOS; Lord et al, 1989) and the autism diagnostic interview—revised (ADI-R; Lord et al, 1989, 1994)] are related to processing speed index (PSI) scores in our sample of 101 children with thoroughly diagnosed ASD
A within-subject ANOVA calculation was conducted in order to compare the PSI to the other indices within the ASD sample. This within-subject analysis was repeated for two groups, one with higher (≥ 100) and one with lower (≤ 99) full-scale IQ (FSIQ), separately, in order to investigate whether the profiles differ between children with higher and lower general cognitive ability

Summary

Introduction

Intellectual functioning is one of the most extensively studied aspects in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD; Oliveras-Rentas et al, 2012). In the diagnostic process of ASD, it is usually assessed by means of the Wechsler intelligence scale for children (WISC; Wechsler, 2003). The verbal comprehension (VCI) and perceptual reasoning (PRI) indices yield the highest mean scores, while the processing speed index (PSI) is typically the lowest score in samples of children with ASD (Foley-Nicpon et al, 2012; Mayes & Calhoun, 2008; Oliveras-Rentas et al, 2012; Styck et al, 2019; Zander & Dahlgren, 2010). Styck et al, 2019) and low levels similar to the PSI in other studies The PSI has been consistently found to constitute a relative weakness

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