Inhibition, flexibility, working memory and planning in autism spectrum disorders with and without comorbid ADHD-symptoms
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Summary
This study investigates executive functioning (EF) profiles in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), specifically examining the impact of comorbid ADHD symptoms in autistic individuals. While previous research has compared pure ASD and ADHD groups, few studies have addressed the significant prevalence of comorbid hyperactivity and inattention in ASD populations. The authors aimed to determine if ASD children with comorbid ADHD symptoms (ASD+) exhibit distinct EF deficits compared to those without (ASD-), pure ADHD, and typically developing (TD) peers. The study included 80 participants aged 6 to 18 years, divided into four groups of 20: ASD+, ASD-, ADHD, and TD. All participants had an IQ ≥ 80. Diagnoses were confirmed using standardized instruments, including the ADI-R and ADOS for ASD, and the DCL-HKS for ADHD. Executive functions were assessed using a battery of tasks measuring inhibition (Go/NoGo task from TAP), flexibility (ID/ED task from CANTAB), working memory (SWM task from CANTAB), and planning (SOC task from CANTAB). Statistical analyses included MANOVA, post-hoc Scheffé tests, and effect size calculations using age- and IQ-corrected z-scores. Results indicated a significant group effect on executive functioning. Post-hoc analyses revealed that the ADHD group showed significant deficits in inhibition, specifically regarding false alarms and omissions, compared to the TD group. Effect sizes confirmed clear impairments in inhibition and working memory for the ADHD group. In contrast, participants with ASD (both ASD+ and ASD-) demonstrated significant impairments in planning and flexibility compared to controls. The ASD+ group exhibited greater inhibitory deficits than the ASD- group, showing performance similarities to the ADHD group in this domain, but did not differ from the ASD- group in working memory tasks. The findings replicate previous evidence that ADHD is primarily associated with deficits in inhibition and working memory, while ASD is linked to impairments in planning and cognitive flexibility. The presence of comorbid ADHD symptoms in ASD children exacerbates inhibitory control issues but does not necessarily induce working memory deficits typical of pure ADHD. The authors conclude that while EF assessment cannot reliably differentiate between ADHD and ASD due to overlapping and heterogeneous profiles, it is valuable for identifying specific cognitive strengths and weaknesses in individual children to guide targeted interventions.
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| Stage | Outcome | Tool | Model | Prompt | Attempts | Completed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| discover | success | OpenAlex-citations | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-19 |
| archive | success | unpaywall | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-25 |
| extract | success | cached | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-26 |
| clean | success | clean | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-19 |
| chunk | success | chunk | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-19 |
| embed | success | embed | Qwen/Qwen3-Embedding-8B | — | 1 | 2026-06-19 |
| promote | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-19 |
| summarize | success | llm | qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant | summ-v5 | 1 | 2026-06-26 |
| tag | success | vector_similarity | — | — | 6 | 2026-06-19 |
| verify | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-26 |
Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-26; verification: verified.
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