There is evidence that mastery motivation contributes to developmental outcomes, both for typically developing individuals and for those with disabilities such as Down syndrome. Mastery motivation appears to be a stable trait, at least during early childhood, but research with adults has been restricted by the absence of an appropriate measure.…

This study aimed to describe the behavioral profile of individuals with SYNGAP1-ID. Parents/carers of 30 individuals aged 3-18 years old with a diagnosis of SYNGAP1-ID and 21 typically developing individuals completed the Vineland-3 Adaptive Behavior Scale and the Child Behavior Checklist. We found that those with SYNGAP1-ID showed fewer adaptive…

Children who are deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) often demonstrate pragmatic language difficulties which can impact academic and social outcomes. This randomized control trial for DHH children, ages 3-12 years, explored the Technology-Assisted Language Intervention (TALI), incorporating augmentative and alternative communication technology (AAC)…

Robust evidence supports the efficacy of early autism intervention. Despite broad consensus that earlier intervention leads to better outcomes, evidence for this has been limited to correlational studies. This study examined timing effects of the Early Social Interaction (ESI) model, a parent-implemented intervention, using a complete crossover…

Multimorbidity, defined as having two or more chronic health conditions, is associated with elevated polypharmacy and mortality. Autism spectrum disorder is a whole-body chronic health condition in which comorbidities -- in particular co-occurring intellectual disability -- contribute to high clinical heterogeneity, polypharmacy and premature…

Executive function challenges are commonly reported in the home setting for children with an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis (hereafter, autism), but little is known about these challenges in the school setting. A total of 337 youth (autism, N = 241 and typically developing, N = 96) were assessed using Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive…

Autism is often associated with early developmental delays in language and motor skills. However, little is known about the complex dynamic processes that drive the co-development of such early difficulties. The aim of the present study was to model the parallel growth of language and motor skills in a cohort of infants and to explore differences…

Black children with autism are diagnosed at an older age. Whether or not late detection is paralleled by differing clinical presentation is not known. We evaluated symptom profiles of 245 Black and 488 sex- and age-matched White non-Hispanic participants (82.8% male; mean age: 4.2 years) referred for ASD diagnosis. Both groups showed similar…

Social cognition is a set of complex processes that mediate much of human behavior. The development of these skills is related to and interdependent on other cognitive processes, particularly inhibitory control. Brain regions associated with inhibitory control and social cognition overlap functionally and structurally, especially with respect to…

Adaptive functioning, or the suite of skills essential for real-world, day-to-day functioning, includes daily living, communication, and socialization abilities. Even in the absence of co-occurring intellectual disability (IQ < 70), difficulties in adaptive functioning are prominent in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Further, ASD individuals…

Smith-Magenis syndrome (SMS) is a genetic syndrome most often caused by a deletion on chromosome 17 or more rarely by a mutation in the retinoic acid-induced 1 gene. The aim of this study was to investigate the Developmental Behavior Checklist (DBC) profile of persons with SMS and the associations between behavioural and emotional problems, age,…

Autism spectrum disorder symptom emergence is heterogeneous, yet literature comparing young children diagnosed early versus later is relatively scant. Toddlers diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder between 12 and 18 months (n = 20), 19 and 24 months (n = 65), or 25 and 41 months (n = 27) were compared on demographics, developmental functioning,…

Purpose: Differences in communication development impact long-term outcomes of children with autism. Previous research has identified factors associated with communication in children with autism, but much of the variance in communication skill remains unexplained. It has been proposed that early differences in sensory responsiveness (i.e.,…

This study aimed to identify potential modifiable factors prior to early intervention that are associated with better adaptive skills in children with autism spectrum disorder. This cross-sectional study recruited patients with autism spectrum disorder, aged 5-12 years from two tertiary developmental programmes in Singapore. Demographics, family…

Communication Complexity Scale (CCS) scores for 269 minimally verbal participants were examined to determine if communicator behavior and task and communicator characteristics were related to scores in a manner consistent with theoretical and research evidence expectations. Each participant completed an interactive assessment with 6 joint…