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. 2014 Dec;44(12):3056-62.
doi: 10.1007/s10803-014-2169-8.

Characterizing the factor structure of parent reported executive function in autism spectrum disorders: the impact of cognitive inflexibility

Yael Granader  1 , Gregory L Wallace, Kristina K Hardy, Benjamin E Yerys, Rachel A Lawson, Michael Rosenthal, Meagan C Wills, Eunice Dixon, Juhi Pandey, Rebecca Penna, Robert T Schultz, Lauren Kenworthy
Affiliations

Characterizing the factor structure of parent reported executive function in autism spectrum disorders: the impact of cognitive inflexibility

Yael Granader et al. J Autism Dev Disord. 2014 Dec.

Abstract

Parents of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) consistently report executive functioning (EF) deficits. This study investigates the factor structure of the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) as reported by parents of children with ASD and typically developing children (TDC). BRIEFs for 411 children with ASD and 467 TDC were examined. Confirmatory factor analysis of a nine-factor model met thresholds for goodness-of-fit in TDC, but not in the ASD sample. We found globally elevated EF problems in the ASD sample, especially on the Shift scale. These findings confirm that children with ASD exhibit significant EF deficits. Further investigation is needed to understand the pervasive nature of cognitive inflexibility in children with ASD.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest Lauren Kenworthy receives financial compensation for use of the BRIEF. The other authors have no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
BRIEF Scale mean T-scores with standard error for ASD and TDC group
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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