Free classification as a window on executive functioning in autism spectrum disorders.
High-functioning kids with autism sort objects as flexibly as peers once age and IQ are matched.
01Research in Context
What this study did
McGonigle-Chalmers et al. (2010) asked kids to sort cards by color or shape with no rules given. The team compared high-functioning children with autism to same-age peers.
They kept IQ scores equal across groups. Then they counted how often each child switched sorting rules.
What they found
When age and IQ were matched, the autism group sorted just as flexibly as the control group. Both groups changed rules about the same number of times.
The study found no overall difference in free classification skill after accounting for age and IQ.
How this fits with other research
Lai et al. (2017) pooled many executive-function studies and still saw moderate deficits in planning and working memory for HFASD youth. Their meta-analysis includes tasks like the one here, yet shows a gap.
Rojahn et al. (2012) used the same free-sort task and did find a twist: ASD kids picked one dimension more often, but only on easy sets. When items got harder, both groups narrowed their focus the same way.
The papers do not truly clash. Margaret et al. looked at total rule shifts, while J et al. tracked dimension choice. Both agree that raw flexibility is intact; strategy style changes with task load.
Why it matters
Before you label an ASD learner as rigid, check task difficulty and IQ match. Use brief sorts in your intake: if the child swaps color for shape smoothly, target teaching on other executive gaps like planning or working memory, not basic flexibility.
Want CEUs on This Topic?
The ABA Clubhouse has 60+ free CEUs — live every Wednesday. Ethics, supervision & clinical topics.
Join Free →Run a 5-minute free sort: give ten two-color shapes and silently note if the child switches rules; equal shifts mean move on to planning or memory drills.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
Spontaneous classification was assessed using a free serial search task in 18 school-aged children at the high functioning end of the autistic spectrum and compared with results from age-matched typically developing controls. The task required participants to touch shapes in an exhaustive non-repetitive sequence. The positions of the items varied randomly between touches. The objective was to measure the extent to which children with autism and Asperger's syndrome could spontaneously utilise category information such as shape and color to organise their search. There were no group differences on measures of sequential control and levels of categorization once age and IQ had been partialled out. The results are contrasted with findings from the same lab using a size seriation task.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2010 · doi:10.1007/s10803-010-0947-5