Practice is the best of all instructors—Effects of enactment encoding and episodic future thinking on prospective memory performance in high‐functioning adults with autism spectrum disorder

• Published in: Autism research Vol. 17; no. 6; pp. 1258 - 1275
• Main Authors: Faustmann, Larissa L., Altgassen, Mareike
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken, USA John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.06.2024
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Autism Spectrum Disorder - physiopathology; Autism Spectrum Disorder - psychology; enactment encoding; episodic future thinking; Female; Humans; intention encoding; Male; Memory, Episodic; Neuropsychological Tests - statistics & numerical data; Practice, Psychological; prospective memory; Thinking - physiology; Young Adult; episodic future thinking; prospective memory; intention encoding; enactment encoding
• ISSN: 1939-3792; 1939-3806
• DOI: 10.1002/aur.3165

Prospective memory (PM) is the ability to remember to carry out intended actions in the future. The present study investigated the effects of episodic future thinking (EFT) and enactment encoding (EE) on PM performance in autistic adults (ASD). A total of 72 autistic individuals and 70 controls matched for age, gender, and cognitive abilities completed a computerized version of the Dresden breakfast Task, which required participants to prepare breakfast following a set of rules and time restrictions. A two (group: ASD vs. controls) by three (encoding condition: EFT vs. EE vs. standard) between‐subjects design was applied. Participants were either instructed to engage in EFT or EE to prepare to the different tasks prior to performing the Dresden breakfast or received standard instructions. Analyses of variance were conducted. Autism‐spectrum‐disorders (ASD) participants did not differ from control participants in their PM performance, regardless of which strategy they used. Compared to the standard condition, EE but not EFT improved time‐based PM performance in all participants. This is the first study to find spared time‐based PM performance in autistic individuals. The results confirm earlier results of beneficial effects of EE on PM performance. Findings are discussed with regards to the methodology used, sample composition as well as autistic characteristics. Lay Summary The present study investigated the effects of the two encoding strategies episodic future thinking (EFT) and enactment encoding (EE) on prospective memory (PM) in autism spectrum disorders (ASD). A total of 72 ASD individuals and 70 controls matched for age, gender, and cognitive abilities completed a computerized PM task. Participants were either instructed to engage in EFT or EE to prepare to the different tasks prior to performing the PM task or received standard instructions. ASD participants did not differ from control participants in their PM performance, regardless of which strategy they used. Compared to the standard condition, EE but not EFT improved time‐based PM in all participants. The results confirm earlier results of beneficial effects of EE on PM.