The associations among motor ability, social-communication skills, and participation in daily life activities in children with low-functioning autism spectrum disorder

Decreased motor ability is a common feature in autism, leading to the proposal of a motor-social link in autism. The purpose of the study was to assess the contribution of motor abilities and social-communication skills to children’s participation in daily activities, among children with low-functioning autism spectrum disorder (LFASD). Participants were 25 children aged 6.5–12 years. The Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency, the Social Communication Skills Questionnaire, and the Child Participation Questionnaire were used. Results revealed the limited participation of children with LFASD and the significant contribution of social communication to children’s participation. The unique finding of this study is the indirect effect of motor abilities on the participation of children with LFASD through the mediating effect of the asocial communication symptoms. This is an additional confirmation of the notion that global process deficits in ASD lead to participation limitations and not only to deficits in social communication skills.