ArticleJournal of autism and developmental disorders2025
How Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation Impact Cognitive Flexibility in Children With Autism.
Article in Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- The relationship between cognitive flexibility and restricted, repetitive behaviors in children with autism: parents' reports vs. cognitive task performance.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Reward processing differences in autism: current understandings and future directions.Social cognitive and affective neuroscience · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeCognitive flexibility is a key neurocognitive process that is often challenging in children with autism. Recent research has highlighted the potential influence of motivation on cognitive flexibility; however, the impact of different types of motivation (intrinsic vs. extrinsic) on the cognitive flexibility performance of children with autism remains unclear.
methodThis study aims to investigate the impact of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation on cognitive flexibility in 43 children with autism and 89 typically developing children (TDC) (age range 36-84 months), using the three versions of dimensional change card sorting task (standard, extrinsic reward and intrinsic motivation versions).
resultsResults indicate that manipulating cognitive flexibility through motivation can improve performance, particularly in children with autism, with a significant impact of intrinsic motivation on this group. In the age range of 36-48 months, intrinsic motivation enhance accuracy in children with autism but not in TDC. From 49 to 60 months of age, both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation contribute to improved accuracy in children with Autism, with intrinsic motivation having a more significant impact. In TDC, however, only intrinsic motivation is associated with enhanced accuracy. In older children, both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation enhance performance in both groups, suggesting the maturation of cognitive systems. This evidence suggests that, in children with autism, the impact of motivation emerges at an earlier age than in typically developing children. Notably, intrinsic motivation has a more significant and profound effect at a younger age compared to extrinsic rewards.
conclusionThe study provides insights into the developmental trajectory of cognitive flexibility in children with autism and highlights the significance of leveraging motivation to enhance this essential cognitive function.
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Registered trials
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