Research concerning temperament in children and adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has suggested a consistent profile of low positive affect, high negative affect, and low regulation (Visser et al., 2016). One area receiving less attention is individual differences among children diagnosed with ASD. The primary objective of this study was to use a person-centered approach to explore heterogeneity of early temperament precursors of regulation in a large sample of infants with elevated familial likelihood of ASD. Early precursors of regulation included temperament assessed at 6, 12, and 24 months whereas outcome measures were diagnosis of ASD, cognitive ability and adaptive behavior at 36 months. Participants included 176 low-likelihood and 473 elevated-likelihood infants, 129 of whom were diagnosed with ASD at 3 years. Results supported a three-profile solution: a well-regulated profile (high positive affect and high attentional focus and shifting), a low attention focus profile (higher attentional shifting compared to attentional focus), and a low attention shifting profile (higher attentional focus compared to attentional shifting). A higher proportion of children diagnosed with ASD were classified into the low attention shifting profile. Furthermore, children with the well-regulated profile were differentiated from the other profiles by a pattern of higher social competence and lower dysregulation whereas children with the low attention focus profile were distinguished from the other profiles by higher cognitive ability at 3 years. The findings indicate that the combination of early positive affect with attention measures may provide an enhanced tool for prediction of self-regulation and later outcomes.

中文翻译：

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自闭症谱系障碍可能性增加的婴儿自我调节的前兆

关于患有自闭症谱系障碍 (ASD) 的儿童和成人的气质的研究表明，低积极情绪、高消极情绪和低监管是一致的 (Visser et al., 2016)。一个受到较少关注的领域是被诊断患有 ASD 的儿童之间的个体差异。本研究的主要目的是使用以人为中心的方法来探索大量具有 ASD 家族可能性的婴儿的早期气质调节前体的异质性。调节的早期前兆包括在 6、12 和 24 个月时评估的气质，而结果测量是在 36 个月时诊断出 ASD、认知能力和适应行为。参与者包括 176 名低可能性婴儿和 473 名高可能性婴儿，其中 129 人在 3 岁时被诊断出患有 ASD。结果支持三方面的解决方案：良好监管的概况（高积极影响和高度注意力集中和转移），低注意力聚焦概况（与注意力集中相比更高的注意力转移）和低注意力转移概况（更高的注意力焦点与注意力转移相比）。被诊断为 ASD 的儿童比例较高，属于低注意力转移特征。此外，具有良好调节特征的儿童与其他特征的区别在于较高的社会能力和较低的失调模式，而注意力不集中的儿童与其他特征的区别在于 3 岁时较高的认知能力。