Dyspraxia in autism is strongly correlated with impairments in which domains?

• A. Social, communicative, and behavioral impairments
• B. Academic achievement
• C. Sleep patterns
• D. Visual processing

Answer: (A)

Dyspraxia, or motor planning difficulties, often co-occurs with broader social and communication challenges in autism because the systems that support planning and sequencing movements overlap with those that support social interaction, gesture use, and language. When motor planning is impaired, children may struggle with coordinated play, imitation, and expressive gestures, which can hinder social engagement and communication and contribute to behavioral challenges as they adapt to these difficulties. This close linkage means dyspraxia tends to align more with impairments in social, communicative, and behavioral domains than with sleep patterns, visual processing, or academic achievement, which are not as directly tied to motor planning abilities.