Cognitive correlates of autism spectrum disorder symptoms

Abstract

Due to the diverse behavioral presentation of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), identifying ASD subtypes using patterns of cognitive abilities has become an important point of research. Some previous studies on cognitive profiles in ASD suggest that the discrepancy between verbal intelligence quotient (VIQ) and performance IQ (PIQ) is associated with ASD symptoms, while others have pointed to VIQ as the critical predictor. Given that VIQ is a component of the VIQ-PIQ discrepancy, it was unclear which was most driving these associations. This study tested whether VIQ, PIQ, or the VIQ-PIQ discrepancy was most associated with ASD symptoms in children and adults with ASD (N = 527). Using data from the Autism Brain Imaging Data Exchange (ABIDE), we tested the independent contribution of each IQ index and their discrepancy to ASD symptom severity using multiple linear regressions predicting ASD symptoms. VIQ was most associated with lower symptom severity as measured by the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) total score, and when VIQ was included in models predicting ASD symptoms, associations with PIQ and IQ discrepancy were not significant. An association between VIQ and ASD communication symptoms drove the association with ASD symptom severity. These results suggest that associations between ASD communication symptoms and IQ discrepancy or PIQ reported in prior studies likely resulted from variance shared with VIQ. Subtyping ASD on the basis of VIQ should be a point of future research, as it may allow for the development of more personalized approaches to intervention.Lay Summary: Previous research on links between autism severity and verbal and nonverbal intelligence has produced mixed results. Our study examined whether verbal intelligence, nonverbal intelligence, or the discrepancy between the two was most related to autism symptoms. We found that higher verbal intelligence was most associated with less severe autism communication symptoms. Given the relevance of verbal intelligence in predicting autism symptom severity, subtyping autism on the basis of verbal intelligence could lead to more personalized treatments.

Personalized functional network mapping for autism spectrum disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

“…This disrupted organization may lead to ASD subjects from small-world network to random network [ 30 , 31 ]. For the positive correlation between lambda and verbal IQ, higher verbal IQ represents milder clinical symptoms of ASD impairment [ 32 – 34 ]. Given lambda is positively related to the shortest path length, the positive correlation between lambda and verbal IQ may also suggest disrupted functional segregation and long-range integration.…”

Integrating Causal Discovery and Clinically-Relevant Insights to Explore Directional Relationships between Autistic Features, Sex at Birth, and Cognitive Abilities

“…In order to examine how cognitive ability may impact symptom presentation, we considered the influence of verbal and non-verbal IQ in our sex/gender models of ASD. Prior research has suggested that cognitive profiles are affected by an individual’s pattern of performance in verbal and nonverbal reasoning - such that an IQ “discrepancy” or “split,” (e.g., NVIQ > VIQ or VIQ >NVIQ) may serve as a potential autism-related phenotype (Black, Wallace, Sokoloff, & Kenworthy, 2009; Chapman et al, 2010); sex- and age-based differences in cognitive discrepancy profiles have also been reported in ASD (Ankenman, Elgin, Sullivan, Vincent, & Bernier, 2014; Johnson et al, 2021). In an effort to control for IQ discrepancies that often occur when comparing autistic males and females, we included a subgroup of male participants (MM) matched individually to the smaller female sample by IQ and AGE.…”

Variables Associated With Successful Treatment Outcomes of Autistic Youth Enrolled in PEERS

“…Interestingly, a lower PRI score also predicted social skill improvement ( p < 0.001), meaning that a profile of a high VCI that offset a poorer PRI to yield an overall strong FSIQ predicted social skill improvement. Specific to autism, it has been recently observed that autistic individuals with higher verbal ability demonstrate lower levels of autistic symptoms ( 37 ). Consequently, reduced autism symptoms observed in cognitive profiles with higher VCI may explain the present findings.…”

“…As described by Kimpton ( 35 ), individuals with this cognitive profile are often diagnosed with a non-verbal learning disability and experience higher rates of social skill difficulties ( 35 ). This cognitive profile also has implications for the autistic community as autistic individuals with higher verbal ability demonstrate lower levels of autistic symptoms ( 37 ) and those with lower verbal and higher non-verbal ability demonstrate increased autism symptoms ( 38 ). Despite these findings, the complex interplay between intelligence and social skills is largely unknown.…”