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Organizational Skills

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Encyclopedia of Autism Spectrum Disorders

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Definition

Organizational skills are a set of techniques used by an individual to facilitate the efficiency of future-oriented learning, problem-solving, and task completion. Organization requires the integration of several elements to reach a planned goal. Dawson and Guare (2010) define organization as “the ability to design and maintain systems for keeping track of information or materials” (p. 1). The broader domain of executive functioning plays a large role in the development and execution of organizational skills. Executive functioning is the multifaceted construct used to describe higher order, goal-directed thinking involving planning, inhibition, flexibility, organized search, and working memory and is thought to be impaired in individuals with ASD (Gyori, 2006).

Evidence suggests that individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have deficits in executive functioning abilities. For instance, impairments in flexibility, attention, and planning have been documented...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

    Dr. Devon Hartford

  2. Department of Psychiatry, The Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

    Dr. Stephen R. Hooper

Authors
  1. Dr. Devon Hartford
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  2. Dr. Stephen R. Hooper
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Correspondence to Stephen R. Hooper .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Irving B. Harris Professor of Child Psychiatry, Pediatrics and Psychology Yale University School of Medicine, Chief, Child Psychiatry Children's Hospital at Yale-New Haven Child Study Center, New Haven, CT, USA

    Fred R. Volkmar (Director, Child Study Center) (Director, Child Study Center)

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Hartford, D., Hooper, S.R. (2013). Organizational Skills. In: Volkmar, F.R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Autism Spectrum Disorders. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1698-3_935

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1698-3_935

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4419-1697-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4419-1698-3

  • eBook Packages: Behavioral Science

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