Attentional networks in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder

Abstract

Background: Individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit lifelong abnormalities in the adaptive allocation of visual attention. The ubiquitous nature of attentional impairments in ASD has led some authors to hypothesize that atypical attentional modulation may be a factor in the development of higher-level sociocommunicative deficits.

Method: Participants were 20 children with ASD and 20 age- and Nonverbal IQ-matched typically developing (TD) children. We used the Attention Network Test (ANT) to investigate the efficiency and independence of three discrete attentional networks: alerting, orienting, and executive control. Additionally, we sought to investigate the relationship between each attentional network and measures of sociocommunicative symptom severity in children with ASD.

Results: Results indicate that the orienting, but not alerting or executive control, networks may be impaired in children with ASD. In contrast to TD children, correlational analyses suggest that the alerting and executive control networks may not function as independently in children with ASD. Additionally, an association was found between the alerting network and social impairment and between the executive control network and IQ in children with ASD.

Conclusions: The results provide further evidence of an impairment in the visuospatial orienting network in ASD and suggest that there may be greater interdependence of alerting and executive control networks in ASD. Furthermore, decreased ability to efficiently modulate levels of alertness was related to increased sociocommunicative deficits, suggesting that domain-general attentional function may be associated with ASD symptomatology.

Figure 1

Illustration of attention network test. Examples of flanker types (a), cue types (b), and the sequence and timing of a single trial (double cue neutral flanker condition displayed) (c)

Figure 2

Bar graphs correspond to median response time (left axis) for correct trials only as a function of group, flanker, and cue. Line graphs correspond to average accuracy rates (right axis) as a function group and flanker (collapsed across cue). Error bars represent one standard error of the mean

Figure 3

Attention network scores (right axis) and collapsed median response time for relevant cue or flanker conditions (left axis). Error bars represent one standard error of the mean