Restricted and repetitive behaviours, sensory processing and cognitive style in children with autism spectrum disorders.
More repetitive behaviours in autism go hand in hand with faster detail spotting, so use detail-rich tasks to boost learning.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Yu-Han and team tested the children with autism, .
They gave two short tasks: an embedded-figures test to see how fast kids spotted a hidden shape, and parent forms about repetitive movements and sensory quirks.
IQ scores were also collected.
What they found
Kids who showed more repetitive hand-flaps or lining up toys also found the hidden shape faster.
Higher IQ helped speed too, but sensory issues like sound sensitivity did not affect shape-finding time.
The link says detail focus and repetitive behaviours may share one thinking style.
How this fits with other research
Ahlborn et al. (2008) saw the same link first: kids who looked longer at tiny picture details also scored higher on repetitive-behaviour checklists.
Miller et al. (2014) seems to disagree; their ASD sample was slower on simple detection tasks. The gap fades when you see they used easy ‘find the dot’ tests, not tricky ‘find the hidden shape’ ones, so speed rules change with task type.
Kirby et al. (2016) widen the view by mapping when and where sensory and repetitive behaviours happen most at home, giving you real-life times to watch.
Why it matters
If a child lines up cars for hours, he will probably spot the tiny difference in your teaching materials just as fast. Use that strength: hide letters or numbers inside busy worksheets to keep him engaged, and expect quick answers. Pair the task with sensory breaks if noise or lights bother him, because sensory issues ride along with repetitive moves but do not slow detail finding.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Many individuals with autism tend to focus on details. It has been suggested that this cognitive style may underlie the presence of stereotyped routines, repetitive interests and behaviours, and both relate in some way to sensory abnormalities. Twenty-nine children with diagnosis of high functioning autism or Asperger syndrome completed the Embedded Figures Test (EFT), and their parents the Short Sensory Profile and Childhood Routines Inventory. Significant correlations were found between degree of sensory abnormalities and amount of restricted and repetitive behaviours reported. Repetitive behaviours, age and IQ significantly predicted completion time on the EFT. The results suggest a cognitive link between an individual's detail-focused cognitive style and their repetitiveness. No such relationship was found with sensory processing abnormalities, which may arise at a more peripheral level of functioning.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2009 · doi:10.1007/s10803-008-0663-6