Reports of co-morbid symptoms of ADHD in children with ASD have increased. This research sought to identify ADHD-related behaviours
in a sample of children with ASD, and their relationship with the ASD triad of impairments and related cognitive impairments.
Children with ASD (n = 55) completed a comprehensive cognitive assessment whilst a semi-structured parental interview (3Di) provided information
on ASD and ADHD symptoms. Co-morbid presentation of ADHD traits in these participants was associated with reports of more
ASD related behaviours. Inhibitory control performance was directly related only to the ADHD symptom of impulsive behaviour.
In contrast, while there was a relationship between social difficulties associated with ASD and theory of mind ability, there
was no such relationship with behaviours relating to ADHD.
Keywords Autism spectrum disorder – Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder – Social cognition – Executive function – Theory of mind
A version of this paper was presented at the International Meeting for Autism Research, London, 2008.