Infant Motor Development in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Synthesis and Meta‐analysis

Studies of infant motor development in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have increased in recent years. This article synthesized this literature through meta‐analysis to assess (a) whether infant motor ability differs in ASD relative to neurotypical controls; and (b) whether motor ability and communication are related in infants with ASD. Study 1 aggregated data from 1,953 infants with ASD (ages 3.0–42.0 months), and Study 2 included 890 infants with ASD (age 6.0–42.9 months). Study 1 revealed that infant motor ability differed significantly in ASD compared with neurotypical infants—this difference was robust to variation in measurement and design. Furthermore, this group difference amplified as age increased. Study 2 indicated that within ASD, infant motor ability and communication are related.