Interpersonal Cognitive Biases in Children and Young People with Neurodevelopmental Disorders: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Purpose of Review Interpersonal cognitive biases have been linked to externalising and internalising problems. This systematic review investigates their role in children and young people with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD), who have a high risk of experiencing such problems. Recent Findings With 16 identified studies, this is a widely under-recognised research area. The three studies conducted within the last 5 years focused on threat interpretation and its association with anxiety. No difference between children and young people with and without NDD was found in the eleven studies investigating hostile attribution of intent, of which the most recent is nearly a decade old. No studies addressed attention or memory bias towards ambiguous interpersonal information. Summary The scarcity and heterogeneity of research highlighted in this paper demonstrate the urgency to use standardised and accessible research methods to develop a strong evidence base regarding the potential content-specific interpretation bias in individuals with NDD.