Superior Disembedding Performance in Childhood Predicts Adolescent Severity of Repetitive Behaviors: A Seven Years Follow-Up of Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Previous research suggests that individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show a detail-focused cognitive style. The aim of the current longitudinal study was to investigate whether this detail-focused cognitive style in childhood predicted a higher symptom severity of repetitive and restrictive behaviors and interests (RRBI) in adolescence. The Childhood Embedded Figures Test (CEFT) and the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) were administered in 87 children with ASD at the age of 6-12 years old (T1), and the ADOS was readministered 7 years later when the participants were 12-19 years old (T2). Linear regression analyses were performed to investigate whether accuracy and reaction time in the complex versus simple CEFT condition and performance in the complex condition predicted T2 ADOS RRBI calibrated severity scores (CSS), while taking into consideration relevant covariates and ADOS RRBI CSS at T1. The CEFT performance (accuracy in the complex condition divided by the time needed) significantly predicted higher ADOS RRBI CSS at T2 (R-2=15%). This finding further supports the detail-focused cognitive style in individuals with ASD, and shows that it is also predictive of future RRBI symptoms over time. Autism Res2016, 9: 282-291. (c) 2015 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.