Intact Emotion Fluency in Autism vs. Adhd and Community Groups

Abstract

PurposeThe Emotion Word Fluency Test (EWFT) accounts for unique variance in Theory of Mind (ToM). ToM being a well-established weakness in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), it was hypothesized that an ASD group would demonstrate performance weakness on the EWFT.MethodA community sample for EWFT comparison (COM, n=113, [[EQUATION]]age=10.43) was obtained from a University day camp and faculty/staff children. The clinical sample included 38 children with ASD ([[EQUATION]]age=11.10) and 86 children with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD, [[EQUATION]]age=9.89). The EWFT and Animals was administered as part of a comprehensive evaluation.ResultsControlling for age, no mean differences were found for EWFT-total, n-switches, n-clusters, or second 15” interval. No relative weakness in EWFT-total compared to Animals-total were observed. Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-2 scores and EWFT scores were not significantly correlated. However, mediational analyses indicated that switching increased EWFT-total more efficiently for the COM vs. ASD/ADHD groups. Compared to the COM group, the ADHD group had a higher frequency of at least one EWFT set loss and generated fewer words in the first 15” interval of the EWFT.ConclusionMore subtle between-group differences may exist regarding the EWFT. However, as measured in this study, emotion word fluency is an intact area of functioning in ASD that could be built upon for social interaction.

Keywords: Autism, Emotion Word Fluency Test, Verbal Fluency, ADHD, Executive Function