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Camero R, Gallego C, Martínez V. Gaze Following as an Early Diagnostic Marker of Autism in a New Word Learning Task in Toddlers. J Autism Dev Disord 2024; 54:3211-3224. [PMID: 37410255 PMCID: PMC11362356 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-023-06043-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/07/2023]
Abstract
The aim was to test the use of eye-tracking methodology for the early detection of ASD in a task of association between unfamiliar objects and pseudowords. Significant differences were found between ASD (n = 57) and TD (n = 57) Spanish speaking toddlers in the number and time of fixation. The TD children showed more and longer fixations on eyes and mouth while the ASD children attended almost exclusively to objects, making it difficult to integrate lexical and phonological information. Moreover, the TD toddlers looked at the mouth when the pseudoword was produced while the ASD toddlers did not. Gaze fixation on eyes and mouth during word learning recorded by eye-tracking may be used as a biomarker for the early diagnosis of ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raquel Camero
- Department of Psychology, University of Oviedo, Plaza Feijóo s/n, 33003, Oviedo, Asturias, Spain
| | - Carlos Gallego
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Cognitive Processes and Speech Therapy, University of Complutense of Madrid, Campus de Somosaguas, Pozuelo de Alarcón, 28223, Madrid, Spain
| | - Verónica Martínez
- Department of Psychology, University of Oviedo, Plaza Feijóo s/n, 33003, Oviedo, Asturias, Spain.
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2
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Ludyga S, Bruggisser F, Leuenberger R, Ishihara T, Kamijo K, Brotzmann M, Trescher S, Förster M, Gerber M. Acute effects of exercise on gaze fixation and affective response inhibition in children with autism spectrum disorder: A randomized cross-over study. Autism Res 2024. [PMID: 39212128 DOI: 10.1002/aur.3224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2024] [Accepted: 08/13/2024] [Indexed: 09/04/2024]
Abstract
Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show impairments in response inhibition, especially in socio-emotional contexts. A single aerobic exercise session has the potential to temporarily reduce such impairments as findings from neurotypical children support acute benefits of this exercise type for inhibitory control and emotion recognition. In children with ASD, we therefore aimed to investigate the effects of an aerobic exercise bout on response inhibition in an emotional Go/NoGo task and gaze fixation as possible mechanism underlying changes in performance. Using a cross-over design, 29 patients completed a 20-min aerobic exercise bout at moderate intensity on a cycling ergometer and a control condition in a randomized order. An emotional Go/NoGo task was administered before and after both experimental conditions. Eye-tracking was performed during the cognitive task to assess the duration of gaze fixation of eyes and mouth parts of faces expressing happy or sad emotions. The results support no beneficial effect of exercise on performance on the emotional Go/NoGo task. Instead, patients showed a greater decrease in accuracy on Go trials displaying happy faces in the exercise compared to the control condition. This change was associated with a more pronounced decrease in the fixation duration of the eyes for faces expressing either happy or sad emotions. In conclusion, while a single session of moderately intense aerobic exercise does not affect response inhibition, it temporarily aggravates ASD-specific deficits in the processing of and response to facial emotions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Ludyga
- Department of Sport, Exercise and Health, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Fabienne Bruggisser
- Department of Sport, Exercise and Health, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Rahel Leuenberger
- Department of Sport, Exercise and Health, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Toru Ishihara
- Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University, Kobe, Japan
| | - Keita Kamijo
- Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Chukyo University, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Mark Brotzmann
- Division of Neuropediatrics and Developmental Medicine, University Children's Hospital Basel (UKBB), Basel, Switzerland
| | - Sarah Trescher
- Children and Youth Psychiatry, Psychiatric Clinics Baselland, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Markus Förster
- Children and Youth Psychiatry, Psychiatric Clinics Baselland, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Markus Gerber
- Department of Sport, Exercise and Health, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
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3
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Lee JP, Chang YH, Tseng YL, Chou TL, Chien YL. Pupillary response during social emotion tasks in autism spectrum disorder. Autism Res 2024. [PMID: 39096024 DOI: 10.1002/aur.3206] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2024] [Accepted: 07/22/2024] [Indexed: 08/04/2024]
Abstract
Autistic individuals encounter challenges in recognizing emotional expressions of others. Pupillary response has been proposed as an indicator of arousal dysregulation or cognitive load. The pupillary response of autistic individuals during socio-affective tasks remains unclear. This study investigated pupillary response in autistic adults when viewing emotional faces/eyes and recognizing emotions during the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) and watching interpersonal touch scenes in the social touch task. The study included 98 participants diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and 37 typically developing controls (TD). Pupil size was measured using the Tobii X2-30 Eye Tracker. The results showed that autistic adults had larger maximal pupil sizes, smaller minimal pupil sizes, and greater change rates of pupil size, particularly during the RMET Eyes task. Clinical correlations revealed that attention switching difficulty positively correlated with mean pupil size in TD participants, while social communication deficits positively correlated with mean pupil size in autistic participants. In conclusion, our findings suggest atypical pupillary responses in autistic adults during socio-affective tasks, indicating heightened cognitive demand. Further investigation is necessary to understand the underlying mechanisms and their association with autistic traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juei-Po Lee
- Department of Medical Education, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Yi-Hsuan Chang
- College of Public Health, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Yi-Li Tseng
- Department of Electrical Engineering, National Sun Yat-Sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
| | - Tai-Li Chou
- Department of Psychology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Graduate Institute of Brain and Mind Sciences, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Neurobiology and Cognitive Science Center, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Yi-Ling Chien
- Department of Psychiatry, National Taiwan University Hospital and College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan
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4
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Alsharif N, Al-Adhaileh MH, Al-Yaari M, Farhah N, Khan ZI. Utilizing deep learning models in an intelligent eye-tracking system for autism spectrum disorder diagnosis. Front Med (Lausanne) 2024; 11:1436646. [PMID: 39099594 PMCID: PMC11294196 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1436646] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2024] [Accepted: 07/05/2024] [Indexed: 08/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Timely and unbiased evaluation of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is essential for providing lasting benefits to affected individuals. However, conventional ASD assessment heavily relies on subjective criteria, lacking objectivity. Recent advancements propose the integration of modern processes, including artificial intelligence-based eye-tracking technology, for early ASD assessment. Nonetheless, the current diagnostic procedures for ASD often involve specialized investigations that are both time-consuming and costly, heavily reliant on the proficiency of specialists and employed techniques. To address the pressing need for prompt, efficient, and precise ASD diagnosis, an exploration of sophisticated intelligent techniques capable of automating disease categorization was presented. This study has utilized a freely accessible dataset comprising 547 eye-tracking systems that can be used to scan pathways obtained from 328 characteristically emerging children and 219 children with autism. To counter overfitting, state-of-the-art image resampling approaches to expand the training dataset were employed. Leveraging deep learning algorithms, specifically MobileNet, VGG19, DenseNet169, and a hybrid of MobileNet-VGG19, automated classifiers, that hold promise for enhancing diagnostic precision and effectiveness, was developed. The MobileNet model demonstrated superior performance compared to existing systems, achieving an impressive accuracy of 100%, while the VGG19 model achieved 92% accuracy. These findings demonstrate the potential of eye-tracking data to aid physicians in efficiently and accurately screening for autism. Moreover, the reported results suggest that deep learning approaches outperform existing event detection algorithms, achieving a similar level of accuracy as manual coding. Users and healthcare professionals can utilize these classifiers to enhance the accuracy rate of ASD diagnosis. The development of these automated classifiers based on deep learning algorithms holds promise for enhancing the diagnostic precision and effectiveness of ASD assessment, addressing the pressing need for prompt, efficient, and precise ASD diagnosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nizar Alsharif
- King Salman Center for Disability Research, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
- Department of Computer Engineering and Science, Albaha University, Al Bahah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Mosleh Hmoud Al-Adhaileh
- King Salman Center for Disability Research, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
- Deanship of E-learning and Information Technology, King Faisal University, Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia
| | - Mohammed Al-Yaari
- King Salman Center for Disability Research, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
- Department of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, King Faisal University, Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia
| | - Nesren Farhah
- Department of Health Informatics, College of Health Sciences, Saudi Electronic University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Zafar Iqbal Khan
- Department of Computer Science, College of Computer and Information Sciences, Prince Sultan University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
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5
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Wright D, Kenny A, Eley S, McKechanie AG, Stanfield AC. Visual social attention in SYNGAP1-related intellectual disability. Autism Res 2024; 17:1083-1093. [PMID: 38698724 DOI: 10.1002/aur.3148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2024] [Accepted: 04/23/2024] [Indexed: 05/05/2024]
Abstract
SYNGAP1-ID is a neurodevelopmental disorder caused by a mutation of the SYNGAP1 gene. Characterized by moderate to severe developmental delay, it is associated with several physical and behavioral issues as well as additional diagnoses, including autism. However, it is not known whether social cognitive differences seen in SYNGAP1-ID are similar to those previously identified in idiopathic or other forms of autism. This study therefore investigated visual social attention in SYNGAP1-ID. Eye movements were recorded across three passive viewing tasks (face scanning, pop-out, and social preference) of differing social complexity in 24 individuals with SYNGAP1-ID and 12 typically developing controls. We found that SYNGAP1-ID participants looked at faces less than the controls, and when they did look at faces, they had less time looking at and fewer fixations to the eyes. For the pop-out task, where social and nonsocial objects (Phone, car, face, bird, and face-noise) were presented in an array, those with SYNGAP1-ID spent significantly less time looking at the phone stimulus as well as fewer fixations to the face compared with the typically developing controls. When looking at two naturalistic scenes side by side, one social in nature (e.g., with children present) and the other not, there were no differences between the SYNGAP1-ID group and typically developing controls on any of the examined eye tracking measures. This study provides novel findings on the social attention of those with SYNGAP1-ID and helps to provide further evidence for using eye tracking as an objective measure of the social phenotype in this population in future clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Damien Wright
- Patrick Wild Centre, Division of Psychiatry, Kennedy Tower, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Aisling Kenny
- Patrick Wild Centre, Division of Psychiatry, Kennedy Tower, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Sarah Eley
- Patrick Wild Centre, Division of Psychiatry, Kennedy Tower, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Andrew G McKechanie
- Patrick Wild Centre, Division of Psychiatry, Kennedy Tower, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Andrew C Stanfield
- Patrick Wild Centre, Division of Psychiatry, Kennedy Tower, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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6
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Polzer L, Schenk M, Raji N, Kleber S, Lemler C, Kitzerow-Cleven J, Kim Z, Freitag CM, Bast N. Temporal progression of pupil dilation and gaze behavior to emotion expressions in preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder. Sci Rep 2024; 14:7843. [PMID: 38570565 PMCID: PMC10991397 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-58480-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2023] [Accepted: 03/29/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Previous work has shown divergent pupil dilation (PD) and gaze behavior in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which may relate to the development of social difficulties in early life. Here, we investigated temporal dynamics of both phenotypes during naturalistic videos of a person displaying facial emotion expressions in 61 autistic and 61 non-autistic preschoolers. PD was segmented into three serial time components derived from a principal component analysis. Growth curve analysis was applied to analyze changes in looking time on eye and mouth regions over time. Groups did not differ in PD time components. Growth curve analysis revealed initially shorter looking times on the eyes and longer looking times on the mouth in autistic versus non-autistic preschoolers. However, a reversion of this pattern was observed over time, suggesting a delayed compensatory increase in eye attention during prolonged viewing periods in autistic children. Positive and negative associations of PD components and gaze behavior over time indicated a dynamic temporal relationship during emotion viewing. Our findings emphasize the need to apply time-sensitive measures in ecologically valid research, which may index etiological mechanisms of social difficulties in ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonie Polzer
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Autism Research and Intervention Center of Excellence, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
| | - Marc Schenk
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Autism Research and Intervention Center of Excellence, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Naisan Raji
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Autism Research and Intervention Center of Excellence, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Solvejg Kleber
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Autism Research and Intervention Center of Excellence, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Christian Lemler
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Autism Research and Intervention Center of Excellence, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Janina Kitzerow-Cleven
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Autism Research and Intervention Center of Excellence, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Ziyon Kim
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Autism Research and Intervention Center of Excellence, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Christine M Freitag
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Autism Research and Intervention Center of Excellence, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Nico Bast
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Autism Research and Intervention Center of Excellence, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
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7
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Yoon CD, Xia Y, Terol AK, Meadan H, Lee JD. Correlation Between Gaze Behaviors and Social Communication Skills of Young Autistic Children: A Meta-Analysis of Eye-Tracking Studies. J Autism Dev Disord 2024:10.1007/s10803-024-06257-x. [PMID: 38400896 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-024-06257-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 02/26/2024]
Abstract
This meta-analysis examined correlations between eye-tracking measures of gaze behaviors manifested during dynamic salient social stimuli and behavioral assessment measures of social communication skills of young autistic children. We employed a multilevel model with random effects to perform three separate meta-analyses for correlation between social communication skills and (a) all gaze behaviors, (b) gaze duration, and (c) gaze transition. Subsequently, we performed meta-regression to assess the role of four moderators, including age, continuum of naturalness of stimuli, gaze metric, and area of interest, on correlation effect sizes that were heterogeneous at the population level. A total of 111 correlation coefficients from 17 studies for 1132 young autistic children or children with high-likelihood for autism (Mage range = 6-95 months) were included in this meta-analysis. The correlation effect sizes for all three meta-analyses were significant, supporting the relation between improved gaze behaviors and better social communication skills. In addition, age, gaze metric, and area of interest were significant moderators. This suggests the importance of identifying meaningful gaze behaviors related to social communication skills and the increasingly influential role of gaze behaviors in shaping social communication skills as young autistic children progress through the early childhood stage. The continuum of naturalness of stimuli, however, was revealed to trend towards having a significant moderating effect. Lastly, it is important to note the evidence of potential publication bias. Our findings are discussed in the context of early identification and intervention and unraveling the complex nature of autism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christy D Yoon
- Department of Special Education, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 1310 South Sixth Street, Champaign, IL, 61820, USA.
| | - Yan Xia
- Department of Educational Psychology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 1310 South Sixth Street, Champaign, IL, 61820, USA
| | - Adriana Kaori Terol
- Department of Special Education, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 1310 South Sixth Street, Champaign, IL, 61820, USA
| | - Hedda Meadan
- Department of Special Education, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 1310 South Sixth Street, Champaign, IL, 61820, USA
| | - James D Lee
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, 6901 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA, 98115, USA
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8
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Ziv I, Avni I, Dinstein I, Meiri G, Bonneh YS. Oculomotor randomness is higher in autistic children and increases with the severity of symptoms. Autism Res 2024; 17:249-265. [PMID: 38189581 DOI: 10.1002/aur.3083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2023] [Accepted: 12/09/2023] [Indexed: 01/09/2024]
Abstract
A variety of studies have suggested that at least some children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) view the world differently. Differences in gaze patterns as measured by eye tracking have been demonstrated during visual exploration of images and natural viewing of movies with social content. Here we analyzed the temporal randomness of saccades and blinks during natural viewing of movies, inspired by a recent measure of "randomness" applied to micro-movements of the hand and head in ASD (Torres et al., 2013; Torres & Denisova, 2016). We analyzed a large eye-tracking dataset of 189 ASD and 41 typically developing (TD) children (1-11 years old) who watched three movie clips with social content, each repeated twice. We found that oculomotor measures of randomness, obtained from gamma parameters of inter-saccade intervals (ISI) and blink duration distributions, were significantly higher in the ASD group compared with the TD group and were correlated with the ADOS comparison score, reflecting increased "randomness" in more severe cases. Moreover, these measures of randomness decreased with age, as well as with higher cognitive scores in both groups and were consistent across repeated viewing of each movie clip. Highly "random" eye movements in ASD children could be associated with high "neural variability" or noise, poor sensory-motor control, or weak engagement with the movies. These findings could contribute to the future development of oculomotor biomarkers as part of an integrative diagnostic tool for ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inbal Ziv
- School of Optometry and Vision Science, Faculty of Life Science, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Inbar Avni
- Cognitive and Brain Sciences Department, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Be'er Sheva, Israel
- Azrieli National Centre for Autism and Neurodevelopment Research, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Be'er Sheva, Israel
| | - Ilan Dinstein
- Cognitive and Brain Sciences Department, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Be'er Sheva, Israel
- Azrieli National Centre for Autism and Neurodevelopment Research, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Be'er Sheva, Israel
- Psychology Department, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Be'er Sheva, Israel
| | - Gal Meiri
- Azrieli National Centre for Autism and Neurodevelopment Research, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Be'er Sheva, Israel
- Pre-school Psychiatry Unit, Soroka Medical Center, Be'er Sheva, Israel
| | - Yoram S Bonneh
- School of Optometry and Vision Science, Faculty of Life Science, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
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Mukherjee D, Bhavnani S, Lockwood Estrin G, Rao V, Dasgupta J, Irfan H, Chakrabarti B, Patel V, Belmonte MK. Digital tools for direct assessment of autism risk during early childhood: A systematic review. AUTISM : THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND PRACTICE 2024; 28:6-31. [PMID: 36336996 PMCID: PMC10771029 DOI: 10.1177/13623613221133176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
LAY ABSTRACT The challenge of finding autistic children, and finding them early enough to make a difference for them and their families, becomes all the greater in parts of the world where human and material resources are in short supply. Poverty of resources delays interventions, translating into a poverty of outcomes. Digital tools carry potential to lessen this delay because they can be administered by non-specialists in children's homes, schools or other everyday environments, they can measure a wide range of autistic behaviours objectively and they can automate analysis without requiring an expert in computers or statistics. This literature review aimed to identify and describe digital tools for screening children who may be at risk for autism. These tools are predominantly at the 'proof-of-concept' stage. Both portable (laptops, mobile phones, smart toys) and fixed (desktop computers, virtual-reality platforms) technologies are used to present computerised games, or to record children's behaviours or speech. Computerised analysis of children's interactions with these technologies differentiates children with and without autism, with promising results. Tasks assessing social responses and hand and body movements are the most reliable in distinguishing autistic from typically developing children. Such digital tools hold immense potential for early identification of autism spectrum disorder risk at a large scale. Next steps should be to further validate these tools and to evaluate their applicability in a variety of settings. Crucially, stakeholders from underserved communities globally must be involved in this research, lest it fail to capture the issues that these stakeholders are facing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Debarati Mukherjee
- Indian Institute of Public Health - Bengaluru, Public Health Foundation of India, India
| | | | | | - Vaisnavi Rao
- Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS), Malaysia
| | | | | | | | - Vikram Patel
- Child Development Group, Sangath, India
- Harvard Medical School, USA
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, USA
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10
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Al-Shaban FA, Ghazal I, Thompson IR, Klingemier EW, Aldosari M, Al-Shammari H, Al-Faraj F, El-Hag S, Tolefat M, Ali M, Nasir B, Frazier TW. Development and validation of an Arabic language eye-tracking paradigm for the early screening and diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders in Qatar. Autism Res 2023; 16:2291-2301. [PMID: 38013243 PMCID: PMC10841856 DOI: 10.1002/aur.3046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2023] [Accepted: 10/14/2023] [Indexed: 11/29/2023]
Abstract
Abnormal eye gaze is a hallmark characteristic of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The primary aim of the present research was to develop an Arabic version of an objective measure of ASD, the "autism index" (AI), based on eye gaze tracking to social and nonsocial stimuli validated initially in the United States. The initial phase of this study included the translation of English language eye-tracking stimuli into stimuli appropriate for an Arabic-speaking culture. During the second phase, we tested it on a total of 144 children with ASD, and 96 controls. The AI had excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Moreover, the AI showed good differentiation of ASD from control cases (AUC = 0.730, SE = 0.035). The AI was significantly positively correlated with SCQ total raw scores (r = 0.46, p < 0.001). ADOS-2 scores were only available in the ASD group and did not show a significant relationship with AI scores (r = 0.10, p = 0.348), likely due to the restricted range. The AI, when implemented using Arabic-translated stimuli in a Qatari sample, showed good diagnostic differentiation and a strong correlation with parent-reported ASD symptoms. Thus, the AI appears to have cross-cultural validity and may be useful as a diagnostic aide to inform clinical judgment and track ASD symptom levels as part of the evaluation process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fouad A Al-Shaban
- Neurological Disorders Research Center, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Iman Ghazal
- Neurological Disorders Research Center, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, Doha, Qatar
| | - I Richard Thompson
- Neurological Disorders Research Center, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, Doha, Qatar
| | | | | | - Hawraa Al-Shammari
- Neurological Disorders Research Center, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Fatema Al-Faraj
- Neurological Disorders Research Center, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Saba El-Hag
- Sidra Research, Qatar Foundation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Mohamed Tolefat
- Shafallah Center for Children with Disabilities, Doha, Qatar
| | - Mogahed Ali
- Shafallah Center for Children with Disabilities, Doha, Qatar
| | - Bisher Nasir
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Thomas W Frazier
- Department of Psychology, John Carroll University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
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11
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Tahri Sqalli M, Aslonov B, Gafurov M, Mukhammadiev N, Sqalli Houssaini Y. Eye tracking technology in medical practice: a perspective on its diverse applications. FRONTIERS IN MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY 2023; 5:1253001. [PMID: 38045887 PMCID: PMC10691255 DOI: 10.3389/fmedt.2023.1253001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2023] [Accepted: 11/06/2023] [Indexed: 12/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Eye tracking technology has emerged as a valuable tool in the field of medicine, offering a wide range of applications across various disciplines. This perspective article aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the diverse applications of eye tracking technology in medical practice. By summarizing the latest research findings, this article explores the potential of eye tracking technology in enhancing diagnostic accuracy, assessing and improving medical performance, as well as improving rehabilitation outcomes. Additionally, it highlights the role of eye tracking in neurology, cardiology, pathology, surgery, as well as rehabilitation, offering objective measures for various medical conditions. Furthermore, the article discusses the utility of eye tracking in autism spectrum disorders, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and human-computer interaction in medical simulations and training. Ultimately, this perspective article underscores the transformative impact of eye tracking technology on medical practice and suggests future directions for its continued development and integration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammed Tahri Sqalli
- Department of Economics, School of Foreign Services, Georgetown University in Qatar, Doha, Qatar
- Department of Engineering, New York University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Begali Aslonov
- Department of Control and Computer Engineering, Polytechnic University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Mukhammadjon Gafurov
- Department of Business Administration, Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar, Doha, Qatar
| | | | - Yahya Sqalli Houssaini
- Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medecine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco
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López B, Gregory NJ, Freeth M. Social attention patterns of autistic and non-autistic adults when viewing real versus reel people. AUTISM : THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND PRACTICE 2023; 27:2372-2383. [PMID: 36995032 PMCID: PMC10576900 DOI: 10.1177/13623613231162156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/31/2023]
Abstract
LAY ABSTRACT Early research shows that autistic adults do not attend to faces as much as non-autistic adults. However, some recent studies where autistic people are placed in scenarios with real people reveal that they attend to faces as much as non-autistic people. This study compares attention to faces in two situations. In one, autistic and non-autistic adults watched a pre-recorded video. In the other, they watched what they thought were two people in a room in the same building, via a life webcam, when in fact exactly the same video in two situations. We report the results of 32 autistic adults and 33 non-autistic adults. The results showed that autistic adults do not differ in any way from non-autistic adults when they watched what they believed was people interacting in real time. However, when they thought they were watching a video, non-autistic participants showed higher levels of attention to faces than non-autistic participants. We conclude that attention to social stimuli is the result of a combination of two processes. One innate, which seems to be different in autism, and one that is influenced by social norms, which works in the same way in autistic adults without learning disabilities. The results suggest that social attention is not as different in autism as first thought. Specifically, the study contributes to dispel long-standing deficit models regarding social attention in autism as it points to subtle differences in the use of social norms rather than impairments.
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Mori T, Tsuchiya KJ, Harada T, Nakayasu C, Okumura A, Nishimura T, Katayama T, Endo M. Autism symptoms, functional impairments, and gaze fixation measured using an eye-tracker in 6-year-old children. Front Psychiatry 2023; 14:1250763. [PMID: 37850106 PMCID: PMC10577268 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1250763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 10/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder clinically characterized by abnormalities in eye contact during social exchanges. We aimed to clarify whether the amount of gaze fixation, measured at the age of 6 years using Gazefinder, which is an established eye-tracking device, is associated with ASD symptoms and functioning. Methods The current study included 742 participants from the Hamamatsu Birth Cohort Study. Autistic symptoms were evaluated according to the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Second Edition (ADOS-2), and the functioning of the participating children in real life was assessed using the Japanese version of the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales, Second Edition (VABS-II). The Gazefinder system was used for gaze fixation rates; two areas of interest (eyes and mouth) were defined in a talking movie clip, and eye gaze positions were calculated through corneal reflection techniques. Results The participants had an average age of 6.06 ± 0.14 years (males: 384; 52%). According to ADOS, 617 (83%) children were assessed as having none/mild ASD and 51 (7%) as severe. The average VABS-II scores were approximately 100 (standard deviation = 12). A higher gaze fixation rate on the eyes was associated with a significantly lower likelihood of the child being assigned to the severe ADOS group after controlling for covariates (odds ratio [OR], 0.02; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.002-0.38). The gaze fixation rate on the mouth was not associated with ASD symptoms. A higher gaze fixation rate on the mouth was associated with a significantly lower likelihood of the child being assigned to the low score group in VABS-II socialization after controlling for covariates (OR, 0.18; 95% CI, 0.04-0.85). The gaze fixation rate on the eyes was not associated with functioning. Conclusion We found that children with low gaze fixation rates on the eyes were likely to have more ASD symptoms, and children with low gaze fixation rates on the mouth were likely to demonstrate poorer functioning in socialization. Hence, preschool children could be independently assessed in the general population for clinically relevant endophenotypes predictive of ASD symptoms and functional impairments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Toko Mori
- Faculty of Nursing, Shijonawate Gakuen University, Osaka, Japan
| | - Kenji J. Tsuchiya
- Research Center for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu, Japan
- Department of Child Development, United Graduate School of Child Development, Osaka University, Kanazawa University, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Chiba University, and University of Fukui, Osaka, Japan
| | - Taeko Harada
- Research Center for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu, Japan
- Department of Child Development, United Graduate School of Child Development, Osaka University, Kanazawa University, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Chiba University, and University of Fukui, Osaka, Japan
| | - Chikako Nakayasu
- Research Center for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu, Japan
| | - Akemi Okumura
- Research Center for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu, Japan
- Department of Child Development, United Graduate School of Child Development, Osaka University, Kanazawa University, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Chiba University, and University of Fukui, Osaka, Japan
| | - Tomoko Nishimura
- Research Center for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu, Japan
- Department of Child Development, United Graduate School of Child Development, Osaka University, Kanazawa University, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Chiba University, and University of Fukui, Osaka, Japan
| | - Taiichi Katayama
- Department of Child Development, United Graduate School of Child Development, Osaka University, Kanazawa University, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Chiba University, and University of Fukui, Osaka, Japan
| | - Masayuki Endo
- Division of Health Sciences, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka, Japan
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Minor GN, Hannula DE, Gordon A, Ragland JD, Iosif AM, Solomon M. Relational memory weakness in autism despite the use of a controlled encoding task. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1210259. [PMID: 37691809 PMCID: PMC10484720 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1210259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2023] [Accepted: 08/09/2023] [Indexed: 09/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Recent work challenged past findings that documented relational memory impairments in autism. Previous studies often relied solely on explicit behavioral responses to assess relational memory integrity, but successful performance on behavioral tasks may rely on other cognitive abilities (e.g., executive functioning) that are impacted in some autistic individuals. Eye-tracking tasks do not require explicit behavioral responses, and, further, eye movements provide an indirect measure of memory. The current study examined whether memory-specific viewing patterns toward scenes differ between autistic and non-autistic individuals. Methods Using a long-term memory paradigm that equated for complexity between item and relational memory tasks, participants studied a series of scenes. Following the initial study phase, scenes were re-presented, accompanied by an orienting question that directed participants to attend to either features of an item (i.e., in the item condition) or spatial relationships between items (i.e., in the relational condition) that might be subsequently modified during test. At test, participants viewed scenes that were unchanged (i.e., repeated from study), scenes that underwent an "item" modification (an exemplar switch) or a "relational" modification (a location switch), and scenes that had not been presented before. Eye movements were recorded throughout. Results During study, there were no significant group differences in viewing directed to regions of scenes that might be manipulated at test, suggesting comparable processing of scene details during encoding. However, there was a group difference in explicit recognition accuracy for scenes that underwent a relational change. Marginal group differences in the expression of memory-based viewing effects during test for relational scenes were consistent with this behavioral outcome, particularly when analyses were limited to scenes recognized correctly with high confidence. Group differences were also evident in correlational analyses that examined the association between study phase viewing and recognition accuracy and between performance on the Picture Sequence Memory Test and recognition accuracy. Discussion Together, our findings suggest differences in the integrity of relational memory representations and/or in the relationships between subcomponents of memory in autism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Greta N. Minor
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, United States
| | - Deborah E. Hannula
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, United States
| | - Andrew Gordon
- Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - J. Daniel Ragland
- Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Ana-Maria Iosif
- Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Marjorie Solomon
- Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
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Meng C, Li T, Wang J. Temporal course of attention bias toward emotional faces in individuals with autistic traits: an eye-movement study. Front Neurosci 2023; 17:1218595. [PMID: 37575304 PMCID: PMC10416432 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1218595] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2023] [Accepted: 07/12/2023] [Indexed: 08/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Similar attention patterns have been found in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and autistic traits (ATs). The Intense World Theory and previous studies suggest that individuals with ASD may demonstrate a vigilance-avoidance attention pattern toward emotional faces. However, the attention patterns in individuals with ATs remain unclear. Therefore, this study employs eye-tracking technology to examine the characteristics and temporal course of attention bias toward emotional faces in individuals with ATs. Methods The Autism-spectrum Quotient (AQ) was used to evaluate the level of ATs among 2,502 college students. A total of 50 participants were selected from the 2,502 college students: 25 high-AQ group participants were randomly selected from the 10% of individuals with the highest AQ scores. Similarly, 25 low-AQ group participants were randomly selected from the 10% of participants with the lowest AQ scores. All selected participants completed an eye-tracking study while performing a dot-probe task with emotional faces (positive-neutral, negative-neutral, and negative-positive). By analyzing data from different time periods, the attention bias and time course of individuals with ATs toward emotional faces were investigated. Results The results show that compared to the low-AQ group, the high-AQ group detected negative faces faster in the early stages of emotional face processing. As the presentation time of emotional faces increased (at the 2-3 s mark), the fixation scores for negative-neutral faces of the high-AQ group were less than 0.5, which was significantly lower than those of the low-AQ group. Meanwhile, the high-AQ group showed brief attentional avoidance toward positive emotion at 3-4 s in the positive-neutral trials, indicating that the high-AQ group exhibited attention avoidance to both negative and positive faces during the middle and later stages of emotional processing. Conclusion This study suggests that individuals with ATs display a vigilance-avoidance pattern toward emotional faces. It contributes to a deeper understanding of the mechanisms of attention in persons with ATs and further supports the Intense World Theory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chunyan Meng
- Department of Public Curriculum, Zigong Vocational and Technical College, Sichuan, China
- Key Laboratory of Applied Psychology, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China
| | - Taolin Li
- Key Laboratory of Applied Psychology, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China
- Mental Health Guidance Center, Qianjiang Senior High School, Chongqing, China
| | - Jing Wang
- School of Health Rehabilitation, Zigong Vocational and Technical College, Sichuan, China
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Maloney SE, Sarafinovska S, Weichselbaum C, McCullough KB, Swift RG, Liu Y, Dougherty JD. A comprehensive assay of social motivation reveals sex-specific roles of autism-associated genes and oxytocin. CELL REPORTS METHODS 2023; 3:100504. [PMID: 37426756 PMCID: PMC10326376 DOI: 10.1016/j.crmeth.2023.100504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2022] [Revised: 04/04/2023] [Accepted: 05/23/2023] [Indexed: 07/11/2023]
Abstract
Social motivation is critical to the development of typical social functioning. Social motivation, specifically one or more of its components (e.g., social reward seeking or social orienting), could be relevant for understanding phenotypes related to autism. We developed a social operant conditioning task to quantify effort to access a social partner and concurrent social orienting in mice. We established that mice will work for access to a social partner, identified sex differences, and observed high test-retest reliability. We then benchmarked the method with two test-case manipulations. Shank3B mutants exhibited reduced social orienting and failed to show social reward seeking. Oxytocin receptor antagonism decreased social motivation, consistent with its role in social reward circuitry. Overall, we believe that this method provides a valuable addition to the assessment of social phenotypes in rodent models of autism and the mapping of potentially sex-specific social motivation neural circuits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susan E. Maloney
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Simona Sarafinovska
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Claire Weichselbaum
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Katherine B. McCullough
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Raylynn G. Swift
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Yating Liu
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Joseph D. Dougherty
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
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Nayar K, Kang X, Winston M, Wong P, Losh M. [Formula: see text] A cross-cultural study of visual attention in autism spectrum disorder. Child Neuropsychol 2023; 29:413-444. [PMID: 35904098 PMCID: PMC9884317 DOI: 10.1080/09297049.2022.2094904] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2021] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Differences in visual attention have been documented in ASD, and appear linked to clinical symptoms. However, most research has been conducted in Western cultures. Because striking differences in visual attention patterns have been documented in other cultures, it is important to understand how culture may influence attentional patterns in ASD. This study compared differences in visual attention in ASD across Western and East Asian cultures, where differences in attention to contextual and global information have been repeatedly demonstrated, to investigate potential culturally-specific ASD phenotypes. One hundred thirty-two total participants included individuals with ASD (n = 24) and controls (n = 47) from Hong Kong (HK), along with a previously studied group of age- and IQ-comparable participants from the United States (n = 26 ASD; n = 35 control). Gaze was tracked while participants completed two narrative tasks that differed in social-emotional complexity. Proportions of fixations to face, bodies, and setting were examined across groups using linear mixed-effect models and a series of growth curve models. Cultural differences were found across tasks and groups. Both the ASD and control HK groups attended more to global contextual setting information, more to the body regions, and less toward faces of characters compared to US groups. Growth curve models indicated that these differences attenuated over time in certain stimuli. ASD-related effects were only observed in the more complex stimuli depicting characters with ambiguous facial expressions. Findings indicate a notable cultural influence on visual attention patterns in ASD, and underscore the importance of stimuli complexity in differentiating cultural versus diagnostic effects on attentional styles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kritika Nayar
- Northwestern University, Roxelyn and Richard Pepper Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Evanston, IL, USA
| | - Xin Kang
- Department of Linguistics and Modern Languages, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
- Brain and Mind Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
- Research Centre for Language, Cognition and Language Application, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China
- School of Foreign Languages and Cultures, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China
| | - Molly Winston
- Northwestern University, Roxelyn and Richard Pepper Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Evanston, IL, USA
| | - Patrick Wong
- Department of Linguistics and Modern Languages, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
- Brain and Mind Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Molly Losh
- Northwestern University, Roxelyn and Richard Pepper Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Evanston, IL, USA
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de Belen RA, Pincham H, Hodge A, Silove N, Sowmya A, Bednarz T, Eapen V. Eye-tracking correlates of response to joint attention in preschool children with autism spectrum disorder. BMC Psychiatry 2023; 23:211. [PMID: 36991383 PMCID: PMC10061704 DOI: 10.1186/s12888-023-04585-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2022] [Accepted: 02/02/2023] [Indexed: 03/31/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND A number of differences in joint attention behaviour between children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and typically developing (TD) individuals have previously been documented. METHOD We use eye-tracking technology to assess response to joint attention (RJA) behaviours in 77 children aged 31 to 73 months. We conducted a repeated-measures analysis of variance to identify differences between groups. In addition, we analysed correlations between eye-tracking and clinical measures using Spearman's correlation. RESULTS The children diagnosed with ASD were less likely to follow gaze compared to TD children. Children with ASD were less accurate at gaze following when only eye gaze information was available, compared to when eye gaze with head movement was observed. Higher accuracy gaze-following profiles were associated with better early cognition and more adaptive behaviours in children with ASD. Less accurate gaze-following profiles were associated with more severe ASD symptomatology. CONCLUSION There are differences in RJA behaviours between ASD and TD preschool children. Several eye-tracking measures of RJA behaviours in preschool children were found to be associated with clinical measures for ASD diagnosis. This study also highlights the construct validity of using eye-tracking measures as potential biomarkers in the assessment and diagnosis of ASD in preschool children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan Anthony de Belen
- School of Computer Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales Australia
| | - Hannah Pincham
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales Australia
| | | | - Natalie Silove
- Children’s Hospital Westmead, Sydney, New South Wales Australia
- School of Medicine, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales Australia
| | - Arcot Sowmya
- School of Computer Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales Australia
| | - Tomasz Bednarz
- School of Art & Design, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales Australia
| | - Valsamma Eapen
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales Australia
- Academic Unit of Child Psychiatry South West Sydney, Ingham Institute, Liverpool Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales Australia
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Zhao Z, Tang H, Zhang X, Zhu Z, Xing J, Li W, Tao D, Qu X, Lu J. Characteristics of Visual Fixation in Chinese Children with Autism During Face-to-Face Conversations. J Autism Dev Disord 2023; 53:746-758. [PMID: 34105046 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-021-04985-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Few eye tracking studies have examined how people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) visually attend during live interpersonal interaction, and none with the Chinese population. This study used an eye tracker to record the gaze behavior in 20 Chinese children with ASD and 23 children with typical development (TD) when they were engaged in a structured conversation. Results demonstrated that children with ASD looked significantly less at the interlocutor's mouth and whole-face, and more at background. Additionally, gaze behavior was found to vary with the conversational topic. Given the great variability in eye tracking findings in existing literature, future explorations might consider investigating how fundamental factors (i.e., participant's characteristics, tasks, and context) influence the gaze behavior in people with ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhong Zhao
- Institute of Human Factors and Ergonomics, College of Mechatronics and Control Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Haiming Tang
- Institute of Human Factors and Ergonomics, College of Mechatronics and Control Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Xiaobin Zhang
- Institute of Human Factors and Ergonomics, College of Mechatronics and Control Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China.,Shenzhen Guangming District Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Shenzhen, China
| | - Zhipeng Zhu
- Institute of Human Factors and Ergonomics, College of Mechatronics and Control Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Jiayi Xing
- Institute of Human Factors and Ergonomics, College of Mechatronics and Control Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Wenzhou Li
- Institute of Human Factors and Ergonomics, College of Mechatronics and Control Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Da Tao
- Institute of Human Factors and Ergonomics, College of Mechatronics and Control Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Xingda Qu
- Institute of Human Factors and Ergonomics, College of Mechatronics and Control Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Jianping Lu
- Department of Child Psychiatry of Shenzhen Kangning Hospital, Shenzhen Mental Health Center, Shenzhen, China.
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Chung K, Chung E. Randomized controlled pilot study of an app-based intervention for improving social skills, face perception, and eye gaze among youth with autism spectrum disorder. Front Psychiatry 2023; 14:1126290. [PMID: 37181907 PMCID: PMC10173303 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1126290] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2022] [Accepted: 04/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction This pilot study aimed to examine the effectiveness of an app-based intervention (Yface) in 53 children with autism spectrum disorder. Yface is a combined program that improves social skills, facial perception, and eye gaze. Methods Children were randomly assigned to one of the two training groups or a waitlist control group. One of the training groups completed the Yface training program lasting for 66 days, while the other training group used a similar app called Ycog, which focuses on cognitive rehabilitation. Questionnaires, computerized tasks, and semi-structured interviews were administered to children and their parents at pre- and post-training sessions. Results The Yface group showed improvements in face perception and some social skills compared to waitlist controls, and in eye gaze compared to the Ycog group. Discussion Our results suggest that this app-based intervention is effective in improving targeted social skills and face perception, although their relative effectiveness differs across skill domains.
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Clinical Utility of Eye Tracking in Assessing Distractibility in Children with Neurological Disorders or ADHD: A Cross-Sectional Study. Brain Sci 2022; 12:brainsci12101369. [PMID: 36291303 PMCID: PMC9599566 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12101369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2022] [Revised: 10/01/2022] [Accepted: 10/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
This study aims to investigate distractibility quantified by recording and analyzing eye movements during task-irrelevant distraction in children with and without ADHD and in children with and without neurological disorders. Gaze behavior data and press latencies of 141 participants aged 6−17 that were collected during a computerized distraction paradigm with task-irrelevant stimuli (IDistrack) were analyzed. Children using attention-regulating medication were excluded from participation. Data were analyzed for subgroups that were formed based on the presence of neurological disorders and the presence of ADHD separately. Participants with ADHD and participants with neurological disorders spent less time fixating on the target stimuli compared to their peers without ADHD (p = 0.025) or their peers without neurological disorders (p < 0.001). Participants with and without ADHD had equal press latencies (p = 0.79). Participants with neurological disorders had a greater press latency compared to their typically developing peers (p < 0.001). Target fixation duration shows a significant association with parent-reported attention problems (r = −0.39, p < 0.001). We conclude that eye tracking during a distraction task reveals potentially valid clinical information that may contribute to the assessment of dysfunctional attentional processes. Further research on the validity and reliability of this paradigm is recommended.
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22
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Zhang Y, Zhang K, Chen J, Liu L, Luo M, Chen Q, Zeng X, Wang G. Eye Tracking Study of Social Intensity on Social Orientation of Autistic Children. Behav Sci (Basel) 2022; 12:322. [PMID: 36135126 PMCID: PMC9495327 DOI: 10.3390/bs12090322] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2022] [Revised: 08/18/2022] [Accepted: 09/01/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Some previous studies indicate that impaired social attention mainly results in social disorders in autistic children. In the social attention mode of autistic children, social orientation and joint attention are particularly important. The influence of different social intensity and ecological validity on them are worthy of further study. This study used realistic paintings with moderate ecological validity as experimental materials, to design isolated individual scene and social interaction scene, and to explore the impact of social interaction on the social orientation of autistic children. It found that in the scenes without social interaction, the attention patterns of autistic children and typical developing children were the same, while the attention patterns of autistic children were abnormal in the scenes with social interaction. From the eye tracking data, it was shown that the gaze processing process of autistic children was not as smooth as that of typical developing children. Compared with cartoons and other social scenes with low ecological validity, realistic painting could better restore the proportion of real scenes. Moreover, it could reduce the complexity of information which could not be done in real scenes. The findings of this study provide support for training and education of autistic children. Intervention with realistic paintings is conducive to the migration of autistic children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yajing Zhang
- National Engineering Research Center for E-Learning, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Educational Big Data, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Kun Zhang
- National Engineering Research Center for E-Learning, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Educational Big Data, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Jingying Chen
- National Engineering Research Center for E-Learning, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Educational Big Data, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Lili Liu
- National Engineering Research Center for E-Learning, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Educational Big Data, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Meijuan Luo
- National Engineering Research Center for E-Learning, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Educational Big Data, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Qian Chen
- National Engineering Research Center for E-Learning, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Educational Big Data, Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Xiao Zeng
- Central China Normal University Wollongong Joint Institute, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Guangshuai Wang
- School of Computer Science, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
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Franchak JM, Kadooka K. Age differences in orienting to faces in dynamic scenes depend on face centering, not visual saliency. INFANCY 2022; 27:1032-1051. [PMID: 35932474 DOI: 10.1111/infa.12492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The current study investigated how infants (6-24 months), children (2-12 years), and adults differ in how visual cues-visual saliency and centering-guide their attention to faces in videos. We report a secondary analysis of Kadooka and Franchak (2020), in which observers' eye movements were recorded during viewing of television clips containing a variety of faces. For every face on every video frame, we calculated its visual saliency (based on both static and dynamic image features) and calculated how close the face was to the center of the image. Results revealed that participants of every age looked more often at each face when it was more salient compared to less salient. In contrast, centering did not increase the likelihood that infants looked at a given face, but in later childhood and adulthood, centering became a stronger cue for face looking. A control analysis determined that the age-related change in centering was specific to face looking; participants of all ages were more likely to look at the center of the image, and this center bias did not change with age. The implications for using videos in educational and diagnostic contexts are discussed.
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24
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Ridley E, Arnott B, Riby DM, Burt DM, Hanley M, Leekam SR. The Quality of Everyday Eye Contact in Williams Syndrome: Insights From Cross-Syndrome Comparisons. AMERICAN JOURNAL ON INTELLECTUAL AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES 2022; 127:293-312. [PMID: 36122327 DOI: 10.1352/1944-7558-127.4.293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2020] [Accepted: 08/31/2021] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Past research shows that individuals with Williams syndrome (WS) have heightened and prolonged eye contact. Using parent report measures, we examined not only the presence of eye contact but also its qualitative features. Study 1 included individuals with WS (n = 22, ages 6.0-36.3). Study 2 included children with different neurodevelopmental (ND) conditions (WS, autism spectrum condition, fragile X syndrome, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder) and children with neurotypical development (NT; n = 262, ages 4.0-17.11). Unusual eye contact features, including staring, were found in approximately half of the WS samples. However, other features such as brief glances were frequently found in WS and in all ND conditions, but not NT. Future research in ND conditions should focus on qualitative as well as quantitative features of eye contact.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ellen Ridley
- Ellen Ridley, Centre for Neurodiversity & Development, Durham University, and Department of Psychology, Durham University, Durham, DH1 3LE, UK
| | - Bronia Arnott
- Bronia Arnott, Population Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4AX, UK
| | - Deborah M Riby
- Deborah M. Riby, Centre for Neurodiversity & Development, Durham University, and Department of Psychology, Durham University, Durham, DH1 3LE, UK
| | - D Michael Burt
- D. Michael Burt, Department of Psychology, Durham University, Durham, DH1 3LE, UK
| | - Mary Hanley
- Mary Hanley, Centre for Neurodiversity & Development, Durham University, and Department of Psychology, Durham University, Durham, DH1 3LE, UK
| | - Susan R Leekam
- Susan R. Leekam, Cardiff University Centre for Developmental Science, Cardiff University, Park Place, Cardiff, Wales, CF10 3AT, UK
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25
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Nayar K, Shic F, Winston M, Losh M. A constellation of eye-tracking measures reveals social attention differences in ASD and the broad autism phenotype. Mol Autism 2022; 13:18. [PMID: 35509089 PMCID: PMC9069739 DOI: 10.1186/s13229-022-00490-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2021] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Social attention differences, expressed through gaze patterns, have been documented in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), with subtle differences also reported among first-degree relatives, suggesting a shared genetic link. Findings have mostly been derived from standard eye-tracking methods (total fixation count or total fixation duration). Given the dynamics of visual attention, these standard methods may obscure subtle, yet core, differences in visual attention mechanisms, particularly those presenting sub-clinically. This study applied a constellation of eye-tracking analyses to gaze data from individuals with ASD and their parents. Methods This study included n = 156 participants across groups, including ASD (n = 24) and control (n = 32) groups, and parents of individuals with ASD (n = 61) and control parents (n = 39). A complex scene with social/non-social elements was displayed and gaze tracked via an eye tracker. Eleven analytic methods from the following categories were analyzed: (1) standard variables, (2) temporal dynamics (e.g., gaze over time), (3) fixation patterns (e.g., perseverative or regressive fixations), (4) first fixations, and (5) distribution patterns. MANOVAs, growth curve analyses, and Chi-squared tests were applied to examine group differences. Finally, group differences were examined on component scores derived from a principal component analysis (PCA) that reduced variables to distinct dimensions. Results No group differences emerged among standard, first fixation, and distribution pattern variables. Both the ASD and ASD parent groups demonstrated on average reduced social attention over time and atypical perseverative fixations. Lower social attention factor scores derived from PCA strongly differentiated the ASD and ASD parent groups from controls, with parent findings driven by the subset of parents demonstrating the broad autism phenotype. Limitations To generalize these findings, larger sample sizes, extended viewing contexts (e.g., dynamic stimuli), and even more eye-tracking analytical methods are needed. Conclusions Fixations over time and perseverative fixations differentiated ASD and the ASD parent groups from controls, with the PCA most robustly capturing social attention differences. Findings highlight their methodological utility in studies of the (broad) autism spectrum to capture nuanced visual attention differences that may relate to clinical symptoms in ASD, and reflect genetic liability in clinically unaffected relatives. This proof-of-concept study may inform future studies using eye tracking across populations where social attention is impacted. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13229-022-00490-w.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kritika Nayar
- Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Lab, Roxelyn and Richard Pepper, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
| | - Frederick Shic
- Center for Child Health, Behavior and Development, Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA.,Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Molly Winston
- Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Lab, Roxelyn and Richard Pepper, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
| | - Molly Losh
- Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Lab, Roxelyn and Richard Pepper, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
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26
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An eye-tracking study on autistic children’s visual attention: The use of spatial-progression, time-sequence, colours and shape-patterns in picture book designs. CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s12144-022-03091-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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27
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Eye-Tracking Studies in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. J Autism Dev Disord 2022; 53:2430-2443. [PMID: 35355174 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-022-05524-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/06/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Eye-tracking studies have shown potential in effectively discriminating between autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and non-ASD groups. The main objective of the present study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of eye-tracking studies in adults with ASD. A total of 22 studies were included for meta-analysis. Eyes and Non-Social regions proved better for discriminating between ASD and non-ASD adults, while fixation duration seems to be the outcome to choose. Active engaged tasks seem to reduce differences between ASD and non-ASD adults, regardless of the emotional content of the stimuli/task. Proportional fixation duration on eyes and non-social areas in non-active tasks (e.g. free viewing) seems to be the best eye-tracking design for increasing the sensitivity and specificity in ASD adults.
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28
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Bagherzadeh-Azbari S, Lau GKB, Ouyang G, Zhou C, Hildebrandt A, Sommer W, Lui M. Multimodal Evidence of Atypical Processing of Eye Gaze and Facial Emotion in Children With Autistic Traits. Front Hum Neurosci 2022; 16:733852. [PMID: 35242018 PMCID: PMC8886727 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.733852] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2021] [Accepted: 01/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
According to the shared signal hypothesis (SSH) the impact of facial expressions on emotion processing partially depends on whether the gaze is directed toward or away from the observer. In autism spectrum disorder (ASD) several aspects of face processing have been found to be atypical, including attention to eye gaze and the identification of emotional expressions. However, there is little research on how gaze direction affects emotional expression processing in typically developing (TD) individuals and in those with ASD. This question is investigated here in two multimodal experiments. Experiment 1 required processing eye gaze direction while faces differed in emotional expression. Forty-seven children (aged 9-12 years) participated. Their Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) scores ranged from 0 to 6 in the experiment. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were sensitive to gaze direction and emotion, but emotion processing did not depend on gaze direction. However, for angry faces the gaze direction effect on the N170 amplitude, as typically observed in TD individuals, diminished with increasing ADOS score. For neutral expressions this correlation was not significant. Experiment 2 required explicit emotion classifications in a facial emotion composite task while eye gaze was manipulated incidentally. A group of 22 children with ASD was compared to a propensity score-matched group of TD children (mean age = 13 years). The same comparison was carried out for a subgroup of nine children with ASD who were less trained in social cognition, according to clinician's report. The ASD group performed overall worse in emotion recognition than the TD group, independently of emotion or gaze direction. However, for disgust expressions, eye tracking data revealed that TD children fixated relatively longer on the eyes of the stimulus face with a direct gaze as compared with averted gaze. In children with ASD we observed no such modulation of fixation behavior as a function of gaze direction. Overall, the present findings from ERPs and eye tracking confirm the hypothesis of an impaired sensitivity to gaze direction in children with ASD or elevated autistic traits, at least for specific emotions. Therefore, we conclude that multimodal investigations of the interaction between emotional processing and stimulus gaze direction are promising to understand the characteristics of individuals differing along the autism trait dimension.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gilbert Ka Bo Lau
- Center for Child Development, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Guang Ouyang
- Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Changsong Zhou
- Department of Physics, Centre for Nonlinear Studies, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Beijing-Hong Kong-Singapore Joint Centre for Nonlinear and Complex Systems, Institute of Computational and Theoretical Studies, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Andrea Hildebrandt
- Department of Psychology and Research Center Neurosensory Science, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany
| | - Werner Sommer
- Department of Psychology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Physics, Centre for Nonlinear Studies, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Department of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, China
| | - Ming Lui
- Center for Child Development, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Department of Education Studies, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong SAR, China
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29
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Stuart N, Whitehouse A, Palermo R, Bothe E, Badcock N. Eye Gaze in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Review of Neural Evidence for the Eye Avoidance Hypothesis. J Autism Dev Disord 2022; 53:1884-1905. [PMID: 35119604 PMCID: PMC10123036 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-022-05443-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Reduced eye contact early in life may play a role in the developmental pathways that culminate in a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. However, there are contradictory theories regarding the neural mechanisms involved. According to the amygdala theory of autism, reduced eye contact results from a hypoactive amygdala that fails to flag eyes as salient. However, the eye avoidance hypothesis proposes the opposite-that amygdala hyperactivity causes eye avoidance. This review evaluated studies that measured the relationship between eye gaze and activity in the 'social brain' when viewing facial stimuli. Of the reviewed studies, eight of eleven supported the eye avoidance hypothesis. These results suggest eye avoidance may be used to reduce amygdala-related hyperarousal among people on the autism spectrum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole Stuart
- University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA, 6009, Australia.
| | - Andrew Whitehouse
- Telethon Kids Institute, Perth Children's Hospital, 15 Hospital Avenue, Nedlands, WA, 6009, Australia
| | - Romina Palermo
- University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA, 6009, Australia
| | - Ellen Bothe
- University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA, 6009, Australia
| | - Nicholas Badcock
- University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA, 6009, Australia
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30
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Kong XJ, Wei Z, Sun B, Tu Y, Huang Y, Cheng M, Yu S, Wilson G, Park J, Feng Z, Vangel M, Kong J, Wan G. Different Eye Tracking Patterns in Autism Spectrum Disorder in Toddler and Preschool Children. Front Psychiatry 2022; 13:899521. [PMID: 35757211 PMCID: PMC9218189 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.899521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Accepted: 05/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been observed to be associated with fixation abnormality as measured eye tracking, but the dynamics behind fixation patterns across age remain unclear. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this study, we investigated gaze patterns between toddlers and preschoolers with and without ASD while they viewed video clips and still images (i.e., mouth-moving face, biological motion, mouthing face vs. moving object, still face picture vs. objects, and moving toys). RESULTS We found that the fixation time percentage of children with ASD showed significant decrease compared with that of TD children in almost all areas of interest (AOI) except for moving toy (helicopter). We also observed a diagnostic group (ASD vs. TD) and chronological age (Toddlers vs. preschooler) interaction for the eye AOI during the mouth-moving video clip. Support vector machine analysis showed that the classifier could discriminate ASD from TD in toddlers with an accuracy of 80% and could discriminate ASD from TD in preschoolers with an accuracy of 71%. CONCLUSION Our results suggest that toddlers and preschoolers may be associated with both common and distinct fixation patterns. A combination of eye tracking and machine learning methods has the potential to shed light on the development of new early screening/diagnosis methods for ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xue-Jun Kong
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Zhen Wei
- Department of Child Psychiatry and Rehabilitation, Shenzhen Maternity and Child Healthcare Hospital, Southern Medical University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Binbin Sun
- Department of Child Psychiatry and Rehabilitation, Shenzhen Maternity and Child Healthcare Hospital, Southern Medical University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yiheng Tu
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Yiting Huang
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Ming Cheng
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Siyi Yu
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Georgia Wilson
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Joel Park
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Zhe Feng
- Department of Child Psychiatry and Rehabilitation, Shenzhen Maternity and Child Healthcare Hospital, Southern Medical University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Mark Vangel
- Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Jian Kong
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Guobin Wan
- Department of Child Psychiatry and Rehabilitation, Shenzhen Maternity and Child Healthcare Hospital, Southern Medical University, Shenzhen, China
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31
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Bednarz HM, Stavrinos D, Svancara AM, Sherrod GM, McManus B, Deshpande HD, Kana RK. Executive Function Brain Network Activation Predicts Driving Hazard Detection in ADHD. Brain Topogr 2021; 35:251-267. [PMID: 34716524 DOI: 10.1007/s10548-021-00877-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2020] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Drivers with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at increased risk of experiencing driving difficulties. An important aspect of driving safety and skill involves hazard detection. This functional magnetic resonance imaging study examined the neural responses associated with driving hazard detection in drivers with ASD, ADHD, and typically developing (TD) drivers. Forty participants (12 ASD, 15 ADHD, 13 TD) ages 16-30 years completed a driving simulator task in which they encountered social and nonsocial hazards; reaction time (RT) for responding to hazards was measured. Participants then completed a similar hazard detection task in the MRI scanner so that neural response to hazards could be measured. Activation of regions of interest considered part of the executive function (EF) and theory of mind (ToM) networks were examined and related to driving simulator behavior. Results showed that stronger activation of the EF network during social hazard processing, including the bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and posterior parietal cortex, was associated with faster RT to social hazards among drivers with ADHD, but not among drivers with ASD. This provides the first evidence of a relationship between EF network brain activation and driving skills in ADHD and suggests that alterations in this network may underlie driving behavior. In comparison, the current study did not observe a relationship between ToM network activation and RT to social hazards in any group. This study lays the groundwork for relating neural activation to driving behavior among individuals with NDDs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haley M Bednarz
- Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, USA
| | - Despina Stavrinos
- Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, USA
| | - Austin M Svancara
- Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, USA
| | - Gabriela M Sherrod
- Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, USA
| | - Benjamin McManus
- Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, USA
| | | | - Rajesh K Kana
- Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, USA. .,Department of Psychology & the Center for Innovative Research in Autism, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, USA.
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32
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Dollion N, Toutain M, François N, Champagne N, Plusquellec P, Grandgeorge M. Visual Exploration and Observation of Real-Life Interactions Between Children with ASD and Service Dogs. J Autism Dev Disord 2021; 51:3785-3805. [PMID: 34595574 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-021-05293-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Two original studies explored relationships between visual attention of children with ASD (candidates for receiving a service dog) and their behaviors during their first interaction with a service dog. The first study consisted in video behavioural analyses of 16 children with ASD interacting with a service dog. During the interaction with a service dog, the time children with ASD spent looking towards social items vs objects was associated with how they interacted with the service dog. The second study was exploratory (i.e. 6 children), using the same behavioural approach but coupled with eye-tracking data. The more children with ASD looked at both their parent and the evaluator, as opposed to inanimate items, the more they interacted with the service dog.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Dollion
- Univ Rennes, Normandie Univ, CNRS, EthoS (Éthologie Animale et Humaine) - UMR 6552, 35000, Rennes, France. .,Laboratoire d'Observation et d'Éthologie Humaine du Québec, Research Centre, Montral Mental Health University Institute, CIUSSS Est, Montreal, Canada. .,School of Psychoeducation, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada. .,Fondation Mira, 1820 Rang Nord-Ouest, Sainte-Madeleine,, QC, Canada. .,Laboratoire Ethos, UMR 6552, B008, Station Biologique de Paimpont, 35380, Paimpont, France.
| | - Manon Toutain
- Univ Rennes, Normandie Univ, CNRS, EthoS (Éthologie Animale et Humaine) - UMR 6552, 35000, Rennes, France
| | - Nathe François
- Fondation Mira, 1820 Rang Nord-Ouest, Sainte-Madeleine,, QC, Canada
| | - Noël Champagne
- Fondation Mira, 1820 Rang Nord-Ouest, Sainte-Madeleine,, QC, Canada
| | - Pierrich Plusquellec
- Laboratoire d'Observation et d'Éthologie Humaine du Québec, Research Centre, Montral Mental Health University Institute, CIUSSS Est, Montreal, Canada.,School of Psychoeducation, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Marine Grandgeorge
- Univ Rennes, Normandie Univ, CNRS, EthoS (Éthologie Animale et Humaine) - UMR 6552, 35000, Rennes, France
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33
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Prillinger K, Radev ST, Amador de Lara G, Klöbl M, Lanzenberger R, Plener PL, Poustka L, Konicar L. Repeated Sessions of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation on Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Study Protocol for a Randomized, Double-Blind, and Sham-Controlled Clinical Trial. Front Psychiatry 2021; 12:680525. [PMID: 34526918 PMCID: PMC8435587 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.680525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2021] [Accepted: 07/26/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: Social-emotional difficulties are a core symptom of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Accordingly, individuals with ASD have problems with social cognition such as recognizing emotions from other peoples' faces. Various results from functional magnetic resonance imaging and electroencephalography studies as well as eye-tracking data reveal a neurophysiological basis of these deficits by linking them to abnormal brain activity. Thus, an intervention targeting the neural origin of ASD impairments seems warranted. A safe method able to influence neural activity is transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). This non-invasive brain stimulation method has already demonstrated promising results in several neuropsychiatric disorders in adults and children. The aim of this project is to investigate the effects of tDCS on ASD symptoms and their neural correlates in children and adolescents with ASD. Method: This study is designed as a double-blind, randomized, and sham-controlled trial with a target sample size of 20 male participants (aged 12-17 years) diagnosed with ASD. Before randomization, the participants will be stratified into comorbid depression, comorbid ADHS/conduct disorder, or no-comorbidity groups. The intervention phase comprises 10 sessions of anodal or sham tDCS applied over the left prefrontal cortex within 2 consecutive weeks. To engage the targeted brain regions, participants will perform a social cognition training during the stimulation. TDCS-induced effects on ASD symptoms and involved neural circuits will be investigated through psychological, neurophysiological, imaging, and behavioral data at pre- and post-measurements. Tolerability will be evaluated using a standardized questionnaire. Follow-up assessments 1 and 6 months after the intervention will examine long-lasting effects. Discussion: The results of this study will provide insights into the changeability of social impairments in ASD by investigating social and emotional abilities on different modalities following repeated sessions of anodal tDCS with an intra-simulation training. Furthermore, this trial will elucidate the tolerability and the potential of tDCS as a new treatment approach for ASD in adolescents. Clinical Trial Registration: The study is ongoing and has been registered in the German Registry of Clinical Trials (DRKS00017505) on 02/07/2019.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karin Prillinger
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Stefan T. Radev
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Institute of Psychology, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Gabriel Amador de Lara
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Manfred Klöbl
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Rupert Lanzenberger
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Paul L. Plener
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Luise Poustka
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Lilian Konicar
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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34
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The application of noninvasive, restraint-free eye-tracking methods for use with nonhuman primates. Behav Res Methods 2021; 53:1003-1030. [PMID: 32935327 DOI: 10.3758/s13428-020-01465-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Over the past 50 years there has been a strong interest in applying eye-tracking techniques to study a myriad of questions related to human and nonhuman primate psychological processes. Eye movements and fixations can provide qualitative and quantitative insights into cognitive processes of nonverbal populations such as nonhuman primates, clarifying the evolutionary, physiological, and representational underpinnings of human cognition. While early attempts at nonhuman primate eye tracking were relatively crude, later, more sophisticated and sensitive techniques required invasive protocols and the use of restraint. In the past decade, technology has advanced to a point where noninvasive eye-tracking techniques, developed for use with human participants, can be applied for use with nonhuman primates in a restraint-free manner. Here we review the corpus of recent studies (N=32) that take such an approach. Despite the growing interest in eye-tracking research, there is still little consensus on "best practices," both in terms of deploying test protocols or reporting methods and results. Therefore, we look to advances made in the field of developmental psychology, as well as our own collective experiences using eye trackers with nonhuman primates, to highlight key elements that researchers should consider when designing noninvasive restraint-free eye-tracking research protocols for use with nonhuman primates. Beyond promoting best practices for research protocols, we also outline an ideal approach for reporting such research and highlight future directions for the field.
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35
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Selvanayagam J, Johnston KD, Wong RK, Schaeffer D, Everling S. Ketamine disrupts gaze patterns during face viewing in the common marmoset. J Neurophysiol 2021; 126:330-339. [PMID: 34133232 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00078.2021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Faces are stimuli of critical importance for primates. The common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) is a promising model for investigations of face processing, as this species possesses oculomotor and face-processing networks resembling those of macaques and humans. Face processing is often disrupted in neuropsychiatric conditions such as schizophrenia (SZ), and thus, it is important to recapitulate underlying circuitry dysfunction preclinically. The N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) noncompetitive antagonist ketamine has been used extensively to model the cognitive symptoms of SZ. Here, we investigated the effects of a subanesthetic dose of ketamine on oculomotor behavior in marmosets during face viewing. Four marmosets received systemic ketamine or saline injections while viewing phase-scrambled or intact videos of conspecifics' faces. To evaluate effects of ketamine on scan paths during face viewing, we identified regions of interest in each face video and classified locations of saccade onsets and landing positions within these areas. A preference for the snout over eye regions was observed following ketamine administration. In addition, regions in which saccades landed could be significantly predicted by saccade onset region in the saline but not the ketamine condition. Effects on saccade control were limited to an increase in saccade peak velocity in all conditions and a reduction in saccade amplitudes during viewing of scrambled videos. Thus, ketamine induced a significant disruption of scan paths during viewing of conspecific faces but limited effects on saccade motor control. These findings support the use of ketamine in marmosets for investigating changes in neural circuits underlying social cognition in neuropsychiatric disorders.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Face processing, an important social cognitive ability, is impaired in neuropsychiatric conditions such as schizophrenia. The highly social common marmoset model presents an opportunity to investigate these impairments. We administered subanesthetic doses of ketamine to marmosets to model the cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia. We observed a disruption of scan paths during viewing of conspecifics' faces. These findings support the use of ketamine in marmosets as a model for investigating social cognition in neuropsychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janahan Selvanayagam
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.,Center for Functional and Metabolic Mapping, Robarts Research Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada
| | - Kevin D Johnston
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.,Center for Functional and Metabolic Mapping, Robarts Research Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada
| | - Raymond K Wong
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.,Center for Functional and Metabolic Mapping, Robarts Research Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada
| | - David Schaeffer
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Stefan Everling
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.,Center for Functional and Metabolic Mapping, Robarts Research Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada
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Negrão JG, Osorio AAC, Siciliano RF, Lederman VRG, Kozasa EH, D'Antino MEF, Tamborim A, Santos V, de Leucas DLB, Camargo PS, Mograbi DC, Mecca TP, Schwartzman JS. The Child Emotion Facial Expression Set: A Database for Emotion Recognition in Children. Front Psychol 2021; 12:666245. [PMID: 33995223 PMCID: PMC8116652 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.666245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2021] [Accepted: 03/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: This study developed a photo and video database of 4-to-6-year-olds expressing the seven induced and posed universal emotions and a neutral expression. Children participated in photo and video sessions designed to elicit the emotions, and the resulting images were further assessed by independent judges in two rounds. Methods: In the first round, two independent judges (1 and 2), experts in the Facial Action Coding System, firstly analysed 3,668 emotions facial expressions stimuli from 132 children. Both judges reached 100% agreement regarding 1,985 stimuli (124 children), which were then selected for a second round of analysis between judges 3 and 4. Results: The result was 1,985 stimuli (51% of the photographs) were produced from 124 participants (55% girls). A Kappa index of 0.70 and an accuracy of 73% between experts were observed. Lower accuracy was found for emotional expression by 4-year-olds than 6-year-olds. Happiness, disgust and contempt had the highest agreement. After a sub-analysis evaluation of all four judges, 100% agreement was reached for 1,381 stimuli which compound the ChildEFES database with 124 participants (59% girls) and 51% induced photographs. The number of stimuli of each emotion were: 87 for neutrality, 363 for happiness, 170 for disgust, 104 for surprise, 152 for fear, 144 for sadness, 157 for anger 157, and 183 for contempt. Conclusions: The findings show that this photo and video database can facilitate research on the mechanisms involved in early childhood recognition of facial emotions in children, contributing to the understanding of facial emotion recognition deficits which characterise several neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juliana Gioia Negrão
- Developmental Disorders Program, Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie, São Paulo, Brazil
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Vitor Santos
- Centro Universitário Internacional Uninter, São José do Rio Preto, Brazil
| | | | | | - Daniel C Mograbi
- Department of Psychology, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro (PUC-RIO), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Tatiana Pontrelli Mecca
- Department of Mental Health, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Santa Casa de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
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Comparing Frequency of Listener Responses Between Adolescents with and Without ASD During Conversation. J Autism Dev Disord 2021; 52:1007-1018. [PMID: 33840008 PMCID: PMC8854326 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-021-04996-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
In conversation, the listener plays an active role in conversation success, specifically by providing listener feedback which signals comprehension and interest. Previous work has shown that frequency of feedback positively correlates with conversation success. Because individuals with ASD are known to struggle with various conversational skills, e.g., turn-taking and commenting, this study examines their use of listener feedback by comparing the frequency of feedback produced by 20 adolescents with ASD and 23 neurotypical (NT) adolescents. We coded verbal and nonverbal listener feedback during the time when participants were listening in a semi-structured interview with a research assistant. Results show that ASD participants produced significantly fewer instances of listener feedback than NT adolescents, which likely contributes to difficulties with social interactions.
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Schaller UM, Biscaldi M, Burkhardt A, Fleischhaker C, Herbert M, Isringhausen A, Tebartz van Elst L, Rauh R. ADOS-Eye-Tracking: The Archimedean Point of View and Its Absence in Autism Spectrum Conditions. Front Psychol 2021; 12:584537. [PMID: 33815191 PMCID: PMC8012688 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.584537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2020] [Accepted: 02/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Face perception and emotion categorization are widely investigated under laboratory conditions that are devoid of real social interaction. Using mobile eye-tracking glasses in a standardized diagnostic setting while applying the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS-2), we had the opportunity to record gaze behavior of children and adolescents with and without Autism Spectrum Conditions (ASCs) during social interaction. The objective was to investigate differences in eye-gaze behavior between three groups of children and adolescents either (1) with ASC or (2) with unconfirmed diagnosis of ASC or (3) with neurotypical development (NTD) during social interaction with an adult interviewer in a diagnostic standard situation using the ADOS-2. In a case control study, we used mobile eye-tracking glasses in an ecologically valid and highly standardized diagnostic interview to investigate suspected cases of ASC. After completion of the ASC diagnostic gold standard including the ADOS-2, the participants were assigned to two groups based on their diagnosis (ASC vs. non-ASC) and compared with a matched group of neurotypically developed controls. The primary outcome measure is the percentage of total dwell times assessed for different areas of interest (AOI) with regard to the face and body of a diagnostic interviewer and the surrounding space. Overall, 65 children and adolescents within an age range of 8.3-17.9 years were included in the study. The data revealed significant group differences, especially in the central-face area. Previous investigations under laboratory conditions gave preferential attention to the eye region during face perception to describe differences between ASC and NTD. In this study - using an ecologically valid setting within a standard diagnostic procedure - the results indicate that neurotypically developed controls seem to process faces and facial expressions in a holistic manner originating from the central-face region. Conversely, participants on the Autism Spectrum (tAS) seem to avoid the central-face region and show unsystematic gaze behavior, not using the preferred landing position in the central-face region as the Archimedean point of face perception. This study uses a new approach, and it will be important to replicate these preliminary findings in future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulrich Max Schaller
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.,Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Monica Biscaldi
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Anna Burkhardt
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Christian Fleischhaker
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Michael Herbert
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Anna Isringhausen
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Ludger Tebartz van Elst
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Reinhold Rauh
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
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Tan G, Xu K, Liu J, Liu H. A Trend on Autism Spectrum Disorder Research: Eye Tracking-EEG Correlative Analytics. IEEE Trans Cogn Dev Syst 2021. [DOI: 10.1109/tcds.2021.3102646] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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40
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Ammons CJ, Winslett ME, Kana RK. Neural responses to viewing human faces in autism spectrum disorder: A quantitative meta-analysis of two decades of research. Neuropsychologia 2020; 150:107694. [PMID: 33249169 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2020.107694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2019] [Revised: 11/20/2020] [Accepted: 11/21/2020] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
The human face communicates a wealth of socially relevant information such as person identity, emotion, and intention. A consistent behavioral finding in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is reduced attention to or difficulty drawing meaning from faces. However, neuroimaging research into the neural correlates of face processing differences in ASD has returned mixed results. While many studies find hypo-activation or hypo-connectivity of core and extended face network regions, others show hyper-activation, equal activation, or even activation shifted to object-selective fusiform gyrus (FG) regions in ASD during face processing. This study consolidates two decades of literature to reveal common and consistent patterns of brain activation when viewing human faces in ASD. It also addresses whether face processing in ASD is routinely shifted to object-centric regions of the FG. To do so, we conducted an extensive search of the neuroimaging literature according to PRISMA guidelines. Peak activation coordinates from a final set of 23 studies, yielding a sample of 713 participants (338 ASD), were included for quantitative meta-analysis using Activation Likelihood Estimation (ALE). ASD within-group results across studies revealed a single activation cluster in the left FG, which presented laterally to the mid-fusiform sulcus (MFS). Typically developing groups displayed common activations across core and extended face network regions. Exploratory analysis of between group findings from the literature did not yield significant results. Overall, our results suggest that individuals with ASD consistently activate at least one typical face network region, the left FG, when processing faces and this activation is not routinely shifted to object-centric areas of the FG.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carla J Ammons
- Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA; Department of Neuropsychology, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, USA; Emory University School of Medicine, USA.
| | | | - Rajesh K Kana
- Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA; Department of Psychology and the Center for Innovative Research in Autism, University of Alabama, USA.
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Vettori S, Van der Donck S, Nys J, Moors P, Van Wesemael T, Steyaert J, Rossion B, Dzhelyova M, Boets B. Combined frequency-tagging EEG and eye-tracking measures provide no support for the "excess mouth/diminished eye attention" hypothesis in autism. Mol Autism 2020; 11:94. [PMID: 33228763 PMCID: PMC7686749 DOI: 10.1186/s13229-020-00396-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2020] [Accepted: 11/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Scanning faces is important for social interactions. Difficulty with the social use of eye contact constitutes one of the clinical symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). It has been suggested that individuals with ASD look less at the eyes and more at the mouth than typically developing (TD) individuals, possibly due to gaze aversion or gaze indifference. However, eye-tracking evidence for this hypothesis is mixed. While gaze patterns convey information about overt orienting processes, it is unclear how this is manifested at the neural level and how relative covert attention to the eyes and mouth of faces might be affected in ASD. METHODS We used frequency-tagging EEG in combination with eye tracking, while participants watched fast flickering faces for 1-min stimulation sequences. The upper and lower halves of the faces were presented at 6 Hz and 7.5 Hz or vice versa in different stimulation sequences, allowing to objectively disentangle the neural saliency of the eyes versus mouth region of a perceived face. We tested 21 boys with ASD (8-12 years old) and 21 TD control boys, matched for age and IQ. RESULTS Both groups looked longer at the eyes than the mouth, without any group difference in relative fixation duration to these features. TD boys looked significantly more to the nose, while the ASD boys looked more outside the face. EEG neural saliency data partly followed this pattern: neural responses to the upper or lower face half were not different between groups, but in the TD group, neural responses to the lower face halves were larger than responses to the upper part. Face exploration dynamics showed that TD individuals mostly maintained fixations within the same facial region, whereas individuals with ASD switched more often between the face parts. LIMITATIONS Replication in large and independent samples may be needed to validate exploratory results. CONCLUSIONS Combined eye-tracking and frequency-tagged neural responses show no support for the excess mouth/diminished eye gaze hypothesis in ASD. The more exploratory face scanning style observed in ASD might be related to their increased feature-based face processing style.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sofie Vettori
- Center for Developmental Psychiatry, Department of Neurosciences, University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Leuven, Belgium.
- Leuven Autism Research (LAuRes), University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Stephanie Van der Donck
- Center for Developmental Psychiatry, Department of Neurosciences, University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Leuven, Belgium
- Leuven Autism Research (LAuRes), University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jannes Nys
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- IDLab - Department of Computer Science, University of Antwerp - IMEC, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Pieter Moors
- Laboratory of Experimental Psychology, University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Leuven, Belgium
| | - Tim Van Wesemael
- Department of Electrical Engineering (ESAT), Stadius Center for Dynamical Systems, Signal Processing and Data Analytics, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jean Steyaert
- Center for Developmental Psychiatry, Department of Neurosciences, University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Leuven, Belgium
- Leuven Autism Research (LAuRes), University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Leuven, Belgium
| | - Bruno Rossion
- Institute of Research in Psychological Science, Institute of Neuroscience, University of Louvain, Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium
- CNRS, CRAN - UMR 7039, Université de Lorraine, 54000, Nancy, France
- CHRU-Nancy, Service de Neurologie, Université de Lorraine, 54000, Nancy, France
| | - Milena Dzhelyova
- Leuven Autism Research (LAuRes), University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Leuven, Belgium
- Institute of Research in Psychological Science, Institute of Neuroscience, University of Louvain, Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Bart Boets
- Center for Developmental Psychiatry, Department of Neurosciences, University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Leuven, Belgium
- Leuven Autism Research (LAuRes), University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Leuven, Belgium
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Understanding Social Communication Differences in Autism Spectrum Disorder and First-Degree Relatives: A Study of Looking and Speaking. J Autism Dev Disord 2020; 50:2128-2141. [PMID: 30864059 PMCID: PMC7261276 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-019-03969-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
This study examined narrative ability in ASD and parents across two contexts differing in structure and emotional content, and explored gaze patterns that may underlie narrative differences by presenting narrative tasks on an eye tracker. Participants included 37 individuals with ASD and 38 controls, 151 parents of individuals with ASD and 63 parent controls. The ASD and ASD parent groups demonstrated lower narrative quality than controls in the less structured narrative task only. Subtler, context-dependent differences emerged in gaze and showed some associations with narrative quality. Results indicate a narrative ability profile that may reflect genetic liability to ASD, and subtle links between visual attention and complex language skills that may be influenced by ASD genetic risk.
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Valiyamattam GJ, Katti H, Chaganti VK, O’Haire ME, Sachdeva V. Do Animals Engage Greater Social Attention in Autism? An Eye Tracking Analysis. Front Psychol 2020; 11:727. [PMID: 32612549 PMCID: PMC7309441 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2019] [Accepted: 03/25/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Visual atypicalities in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are a well documented phenomenon, beginning as early as 2-6 months of age and manifesting in a significantly decreased attention to the eyes, direct gaze and socially salient information. Early emerging neurobiological deficits in perceiving social stimuli as rewarding or its active avoidance due to the anxiety it entails have been widely purported as potential reasons for this atypicality. Parallel research evidence also points to the significant benefits of animal presence for reducing social anxiety and enhancing social interaction in children with autism. While atypicality in social attention in ASD has been widely substantiated, whether this atypicality persists equally across species types or is confined to humans has not been a key focus of research insofar. METHODS We attempted a comprehensive examination of the differences in visual attention to static images of human and animal faces (40 images; 20 human faces and 20 animal faces) among children with ASD using an eye tracking paradigm. 44 children (ASD n = 21; TD n = 23) participated in the study (10,362 valid observations) across five regions of interest (left eye, right eye, eye region, face and screen). RESULTS Results obtained revealed significantly greater social attention across human and animal stimuli in typical controls when compared to children with ASD. However in children with ASD, a significantly greater attention allocation was seen to animal faces and eye region and lesser attention to the animal mouth when compared to human faces, indicative of a clear attentional preference to socially salient regions of animal stimuli. The positive attentional bias toward animals was also seen in terms of a significantly greater visual attention to direct gaze in animal images. CONCLUSION Our results suggest the possibility that atypicalities in social attention in ASD may not be uniform across species. It adds to the current neural and biomarker evidence base of the potentially greater social reward processing and lesser social anxiety underlying animal stimuli as compared to human stimuli in children with ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Harish Katti
- Centre for Neuroscience, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, India
| | | | - Marguerite E. O’Haire
- Department of Comparative Pathobiology, Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine, West Lafayette, IN, United States
| | - Virender Sachdeva
- Child Sight Institute, Nimmagadda Prasad Children’s Eye Care Centre, L V Prasad Eye Institute, GMRV Campus, Visakhapatnam, India
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Wegner-Clemens K, Rennig J, Beauchamp MS. A relationship between Autism-Spectrum Quotient and face viewing behavior in 98 participants. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0230866. [PMID: 32352984 PMCID: PMC7192493 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0230866] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2019] [Accepted: 03/10/2020] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Faces are one of the most important stimuli that we encounter, but humans vary dramatically in their behavior when viewing a face: some individuals preferentially fixate the eyes, others fixate the mouth, and still others show an intermediate pattern. The determinants of these large individual differences are unknown. However, individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) spend less time fixating the eyes of a viewed face than controls, suggesting the hypothesis that autistic traits in healthy adults might explain individual differences in face viewing behavior. Autistic traits were measured in 98 healthy adults recruited from an academic setting using the Autism-Spectrum Quotient, a validated 50-statement questionnaire. Fixations were measured using a video-based eye tracker while participants viewed two different types of audiovisual movies: short videos of talker speaking single syllables and longer videos of talkers speaking sentences in a social context. For both types of movies, there was a positive correlation between Autism-Spectrum Quotient score and percent of time fixating the lower half of the face that explained from 4% to 10% of the variance in individual face viewing behavior. This effect suggests that in healthy adults, autistic traits are one of many factors that contribute to individual differences in face viewing behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kira Wegner-Clemens
- Department of Neurosurgery and Core for Advanced MRI, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Johannes Rennig
- Department of Neurosurgery and Core for Advanced MRI, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Michael S. Beauchamp
- Department of Neurosurgery and Core for Advanced MRI, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
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Jongerius C, Hessels RS, Romijn JA, Smets EMA, Hillen MA. The Measurement of Eye Contact in Human Interactions: A Scoping Review. JOURNAL OF NONVERBAL BEHAVIOR 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s10919-020-00333-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
AbstractEye contact is a fundamental aspect of nonverbal communication and therefore important for understanding human interaction. Eye contact has been the subject of research in many disciplines, including communication sciences, social psychology, and psychiatry, and a variety of techniques have been used to measure it. The choice of measurement method has consequences for research outcomes and their interpretation. To ensure that research findings align with study aims and populations, it is essential that methodological choices are well substantiated. Therefore, to enhance the effective examination of eye contact, we performed a literature review of the methods used to study eye contact. We searched Medline, PsycINFO and Web of Science for empirical peer-reviewed articles published in English that described quantitative studies on human eye contact and included a methodological description. The identified studies (N = 109) used two approaches to assess eye contact: direct, i.e., assessing eye contact while it is occurring, and indirect, i.e., assessing eye contact retrospectively (e.g., from video recordings). Within these categories, eight specific techniques were distinguished. Variation was found regarding the reciprocity of eye contact between two individuals, the involvement of an assessor and the behavior of participants while being studied. Measures not involving the interactors in assessment of eye contact and have a higher spatial and temporal resolution, such as eye tracking, have gained popularity. Our results show wide methodological diversity regarding the measurement of eye contact. Although studies often define eye contact as gaze towards an exact location, this may not do justice to the subjective character of eye contact. The various methodologies have hardly ever been compared, limiting the ability to compare findings between studies. Future studies should take notice of the controversy surrounding eye contact measures.
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Drimalla H, Scheffer T, Landwehr N, Baskow I, Roepke S, Behnia B, Dziobek I. Towards the automatic detection of social biomarkers in autism spectrum disorder: introducing the simulated interaction task (SIT). NPJ Digit Med 2020; 3:25. [PMID: 32140568 PMCID: PMC7048784 DOI: 10.1038/s41746-020-0227-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2019] [Accepted: 01/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Social interaction deficits are evident in many psychiatric conditions and specifically in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but hard to assess objectively. We present a digital tool to automatically quantify biomarkers of social interaction deficits: the simulated interaction task (SIT), which entails a standardized 7-min simulated dialog via video and the automated analysis of facial expressions, gaze behavior, and voice characteristics. In a study with 37 adults with ASD without intellectual disability and 43 healthy controls, we show the potential of the tool as a diagnostic instrument and for better description of ASD-associated social phenotypes. Using machine-learning tools, we detected individuals with ASD with an accuracy of 73%, sensitivity of 67%, and specificity of 79%, based on their facial expressions and vocal characteristics alone. Especially reduced social smiling and facial mimicry as well as a higher voice fundamental frequency and harmony-to-noise-ratio were characteristic for individuals with ASD. The time-effective and cost-effective computer-based analysis outperformed a majority vote and performed equal to clinical expert ratings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanna Drimalla
- Department of Psychology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Unter den Linden 6, 10099 Berlin, Germany
- Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Unter den Linden 6, 10099 Berlin, Germany
- Digital Health Center, Hasso Plattner Institute, University of Potsdam, Prof.-Dr.-Helmert-Str. 2-3, 14482 Potsdam, Germany
| | - Tobias Scheffer
- Institute of Computer Science, University of Potsdam, Am Neuen Palais 10, 14469 Potsdam, Germany
| | - Niels Landwehr
- Institute of Computer Science, University of Potsdam, Am Neuen Palais 10, 14469 Potsdam, Germany
- Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy, Max-Eyth-Allee 100, 14469 Potsdam, Germany
| | - Irina Baskow
- Department of Psychology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Unter den Linden 6, 10099 Berlin, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Benjamin Franklin, Hindenburgdamm 30, 12203 Berlin, Germany
| | - Stefan Roepke
- Department of Psychiatry, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Benjamin Franklin, Hindenburgdamm 30, 12203 Berlin, Germany
| | - Behnoush Behnia
- Department of Psychiatry, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Benjamin Franklin, Hindenburgdamm 30, 12203 Berlin, Germany
| | - Isabel Dziobek
- Department of Psychology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Unter den Linden 6, 10099 Berlin, Germany
- Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Unter den Linden 6, 10099 Berlin, Germany
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Sorensen T, Zane E, Feng T, Narayanan S, Grossman R. Cross-Modal Coordination of Face-Directed Gaze and Emotional Speech Production in School-Aged Children and Adolescents with ASD. Sci Rep 2019; 9:18301. [PMID: 31797950 PMCID: PMC6892887 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-54587-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2019] [Accepted: 11/14/2019] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder involves persistent difficulties in social communication. Although these difficulties affect both verbal and nonverbal communication, there are no quantitative behavioral studies to date investigating the cross-modal coordination of verbal and nonverbal communication in autism. The objective of the present study was to characterize the dynamic relation between speech production and facial expression in children with autism and to establish how face-directed gaze modulates this cross-modal coordination. In a dynamic mimicry task, experiment participants watched and repeated neutral and emotional spoken sentences with accompanying facial expressions. Analysis of audio and motion capture data quantified cross-modal coordination between simultaneous speech production and facial expression. Whereas neurotypical children produced emotional sentences with strong cross-modal coordination and produced neutral sentences with weak cross-modal coordination, autistic children produced similar levels of cross-modal coordination for both neutral and emotional sentences. An eyetracking analysis revealed that cross-modal coordination of speech production and facial expression was greater when the neurotypical child spent more time looking at the face, but weaker when the autistic child spent more time looking at the face. In sum, social communication difficulties in autism spectrum disorder may involve deficits in cross-modal coordination. This finding may inform how autistic individuals are perceived in their daily conversations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanner Sorensen
- Signal Analysis and Interpretation Laboratory, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, USA.
| | - Emily Zane
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Emerson College, Boston, MA, 02116, USA
| | - Tiantian Feng
- Signal Analysis and Interpretation Laboratory, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, USA
| | - Shrikanth Narayanan
- Signal Analysis and Interpretation Laboratory, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, USA
| | - Ruth Grossman
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Emerson College, Boston, MA, 02116, USA
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Bochynska A, Vulchanova M, Vulchanov V, Landau B. Spatial language difficulties reflect the structure of intact spatial representation: Evidence from high-functioning autism. Cogn Psychol 2019; 116:101249. [PMID: 31743869 DOI: 10.1016/j.cogpsych.2019.101249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2018] [Revised: 10/16/2019] [Accepted: 10/22/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Previous studies have shown that the basic properties of the visual representation of space are reflected in spatial language. This close relationship between linguistic and non-linguistic spatial systems has been observed both in typical development and in some developmental disorders. Here we provide novel evidence for structural parallels along with a degree of autonomy between these two systems among individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder, a developmental disorder with uneven cognitive and linguistic profiles. In four experiments, we investigated language and memory for locations organized around an axis-based reference system. Crucially, we also recorded participants' eye movements during the tasks in order to provide new insights into the online processes underlying spatial thinking. Twenty-three intellectually high-functioning individuals with autism (HFA) and 23 typically developing controls (TD), all native speakers of Norwegian matched on chronological age and cognitive abilities, participated in the studies. The results revealed a well-preserved axial reference system in HFA and weakness in the representation of direction within the axis, which was especially evident in spatial language. Performance on the non-linguistic tasks did not differ between HFA and control participants, and we observed clear structural parallels between spatial language and spatial representation in both groups. However, there were some subtle differences in the use of spatial language in HFA compared to TD, suggesting that despite the structural parallels, some aspects of spatial language in HFA deviated from the typical pattern. These findings provide novel insights into the prominence of the axial reference systems in non-linguistic spatial representations and spatial language, as well as the possibility that the two systems are, to some degree, autonomous.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agata Bochynska
- Department of Language and Literature, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NTNU Trondheim, Norway; Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Mila Vulchanova
- Department of Language and Literature, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NTNU Trondheim, Norway
| | - Valentin Vulchanov
- Department of Language and Literature, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NTNU Trondheim, Norway
| | - Barbara Landau
- Department of Cognitive Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
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Debladis J, Valette M, Strenilkov K, Mantoulan C, Thuilleaux D, Laurier V, Molinas C, Barone P, Tauber M. Face processing and exploration of social signals in Prader-Willi syndrome: a genetic signature. Orphanet J Rare Dis 2019; 14:262. [PMID: 31730500 PMCID: PMC6858697 DOI: 10.1186/s13023-019-1221-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2019] [Accepted: 10/09/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Faces are critical social cues that must be perfectly processed in order to engage appropriately in everyday social interactions. In Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS), a rare genetic disorder characterized by cognitive and behavioural difficulties including autism spectrum disorder, the literature referring to face processing is sparse. Given reports of poor social interactions in individuals with PWS, we sought to assess their face and emotion recognition skills during eyetracking recordings. RESULTS Compared with controls, patients with PWS performed more poorly on face/emotion recognition. We observed atypical facial exploration by patients with maternal disomy. These patients looked preferentially at the mouth region, whereas patients with a deletion and controls were more attracted to the eye region. During social scenes, the exploration became more atypical as the social content increased. CONCLUSIONS Our comprehensive study brings new insights into the face processing of patients with PWS. Atypical facial exploration was only displayed by patients with the maternal disomy subtype, corresponding to their higher rate of autism spectrum disorder. This finding strongly argues in favor of early identification of this genetic subgroup in order to optimize care by implementing tailored interventions for each patient as soon as possible.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jimmy Debladis
- Brain & Cognition Research Center (CerCo), University of Toulouse Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France. .,Brain & Cognition Research Center (CerCo), CNRS, Purpan Faculty of Medicine, Toulouse, France. .,Cerveau & Cognition, CNRS UMR 5549, Pavillon Baudot, CHU Purpan, BP 25202, 31052, Toulouse Cedex, France.
| | - Marion Valette
- Prader-Willi Syndrome Reference Center, Children's Hospital, Toulouse, France
| | | | - Carine Mantoulan
- Prader-Willi Syndrome Reference Center, Children's Hospital, Toulouse, France
| | | | | | - Catherine Molinas
- Prader-Willi Syndrome Reference Center, Children's Hospital, Toulouse, France
| | - Pascal Barone
- Brain & Cognition Research Center (CerCo), University of Toulouse Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France.,Brain & Cognition Research Center (CerCo), CNRS, Purpan Faculty of Medicine, Toulouse, France
| | - Maïthé Tauber
- Prader-Willi Syndrome Reference Center, Children's Hospital, Toulouse, France.,Toulouse-Purpan Physiopathology Center, INSERM, Toulouse, France
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Souter NE, Arunachalam S, Luyster RJ. The robustness of eye-mouth index as an eye-tracking metric of social attention in toddlers. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL DEVELOPMENT 2019; 44:469-478. [PMID: 33762781 DOI: 10.1177/0165025419885186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Eye-tracking research on social attention in infants and toddlers has included heterogeneous stimuli and analysis techniques. This allows measurement of looking to inner facial features under diverse conditions but restricts across-study comparisons. Eye-mouth index (EMI) is a measure of relative preference for looking to the eyes or mouth, independent of time spent attending to the face. The current study assessed whether EMI was more robust to differences in stimulus type than percent dwell time (PDT) toward the eyes, mouth, and face. Participants were typically developing toddlers aged 18 to 30 months (N = 58). Stimuli were dynamic videos with single and multiple actors. It was hypothesized that stimulus type would affect PDT to the face, eyes, and mouth, but not EMI. Generalized estimating equations demonstrated that all measures including EMI were influenced by stimulus type. Nevertheless, planned contrasts suggested that EMI was more robust than PDT when comparing heterogeneous stimuli. EMI may allow for a more robust comparison of social attention to inner facial features across eye-tracking studies.
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