1
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Hartston M, Lulav-Bash T, Goldstein-Marcusohn Y, Avidan G, Hadad BS. Perceptual narrowing continues throughout childhood: Evidence from specialization of face processing. J Exp Child Psychol 2024; 245:105964. [PMID: 38823356 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2024.105964] [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] [Received: 10/22/2023] [Revised: 04/17/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 06/03/2024]
Abstract
Face recognition shows a long trajectory of development and is known to be closely associated with the development of social skills. However, it is still debated whether this long trajectory is perceptually based and what the role is of experience-based refinements of face representations throughout development. We examined the effects of short and long-term experienced stimulus history on face processing, using regression biases of face representations towards the experienced mean. Children and adults performed same-different judgments in a serial discrimination task where two consecutive faces were drawn from a distribution of morphed faces. The results show that face recognition continues to improve after 9 years of age, with more pronounced improvements for own-race faces. This increased narrowing with age is also indicated by similar use of stimulus statistics for own-race and other-race faces in children, contrary to the different use of the overall stimulus history for these two face types in adults. Increased face proficiency in adulthood renders the perceptual system less tuned to other-race face statistics. Altogether, the results demonstrate associations between levels of specialization and the extent to which perceptual representations become narrowly tuned with age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marissa Hartston
- Department of Special Education, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, Haifa 3498838, Israel
| | - Tal Lulav-Bash
- Department of Special Education, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, Haifa 3498838, Israel; Department of Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 84105, Israel
| | - Yael Goldstein-Marcusohn
- Department of Special Education, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, Haifa 3498838, Israel
| | - Galia Avidan
- Department of Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 84105, Israel
| | - Bat-Sheva Hadad
- Department of Special Education, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, Haifa 3498838, Israel; Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center, University of Haifa, Haifa 3498838, Israel.
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2
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Manning C. Visual processing and decision-making in autism and dyslexia: Insights from cross-syndrome approaches. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2024:17470218241264627. [PMID: 38876999 DOI: 10.1177/17470218241264627] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2024]
Abstract
Atypical visual processing has been reported in developmental conditions like autism and dyslexia, and some accounts propose a causal role for visual processing in the development of these conditions. However, few studies make direct comparisons between conditions, or use sufficiently sensitive methods, meaning that it is hard to say whether atypical visual processing tells us anything specific about these conditions, or whether it reflects a more general marker of atypical development. Here I review findings from two computational modelling approaches (equivalent noise and diffusion modelling) and related electroencephalography (EEG) indices which we have applied to data from autistic, dyslexic and typically developing children to reveal how the component processes involved in visual processing and decision-making are altered in autism and dyslexia. The results identify both areas of convergence and divergence in autistic and dyslexic children's visual processing and decision-making, with implications for influential theoretical accounts such as weak central coherence, increased internal noise, and dorsal-stream vulnerability. In both sets of studies, we also see considerable variability across children in all three groups. To better understand this variability, and further understand the convergence and divergence identified between conditions, future studies would benefit from studying how the component processes reviewed here relate to transdiagnostic dimensions, which will also give insights into individual differences in visual processing and decision-making more generally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catherine Manning
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
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3
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Mazuz Y, Kessler Y, Ganel T. Age-related changes in the susceptibility to visual illusions of size. Sci Rep 2024; 14:14583. [PMID: 38918501 PMCID: PMC11199550 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-65405-6] [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: 04/20/2024] [Accepted: 06/19/2024] [Indexed: 06/27/2024] Open
Abstract
As the global population ages, understanding of the effect of aging on visual perception is of growing importance. This study investigates age-related changes in adulthood along size perception through the lens of three visual illusions: the Ponzo, Ebbinghaus, and Height-width illusions. Utilizing the Bayesian conceptualization of the aging brain, which posits increased reliance on prior knowledge with age, we explored potential differences in the susceptibility to visual illusions across different age groups in adults (ages 20-85 years). To this end, we used the BTPI (Ben-Gurion University Test for Perceptual Illusions), an online validated battery of visual illusions developed in our lab. The findings revealed distinct patterns of age-related changes for each of the illusions, challenging the idea of a generalized increase in reliance on prior knowledge with age. Specifically, we observed a systematic reduction in susceptibility to the Ebbinghaus illusion with age, while susceptibility to the Height-width illusion increased with age. As for the Ponzo illusion, there were no significant changes with age. These results underscore the complexity of age-related changes in visual perception and converge with previous findings to support the idea that different visual illusions of size are mediated by distinct perceptual mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yarden Mazuz
- Department of Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, 8410500, Beer-Sheva, Israel
| | - Yoav Kessler
- Department of Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, 8410500, Beer-Sheva, Israel
| | - Tzvi Ganel
- Department of Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, 8410500, Beer-Sheva, Israel.
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4
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Twito R, Hadad BS, Szpiro S. Is she still angry? Intact learning but no updating of facial expressions priors in autism. Autism Res 2024; 17:934-946. [PMID: 38716802 DOI: 10.1002/aur.3145] [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: 08/25/2023] [Accepted: 04/23/2024] [Indexed: 05/18/2024]
Abstract
Autistic people exhibit atypical use of prior information when processing simple perceptual stimuli; yet, it remains unclear whether and how these difficulties in using priors extend to complex social stimuli. Here, we compared autistic people without accompanying intellectual disability and nonautistic people in their ability to acquire an "emotional prior" of a facial expression and update this prior to a different facial expression of the same identity. Participants performed a two-interval same/different discrimination task between two facial expressions. To study the acquisition of the prior, we examined how discrimination was modified by the contraction of the perceived facial expressions toward the average of presented stimuli (i.e., regression to the mean). At first, facial expressions surrounded one average emotional prior (mostly sad or angry), and then the average switched (to mostly angry or sad, accordingly). Autistic people exhibited challenges in facial discrimination, and yet acquired the first prior, demonstrating typical regression-to-the-mean effects. However, unlike nonautistic people, autistic people did not update their perception to the second prior, suggesting they are less flexible in updating an acquired prior of emotional expressions. Our findings shed light on the perception of emotional expressions, one of the most pressing challenges in autism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renana Twito
- Department of Special Education, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Bat-Sheva Hadad
- Department of Special Education, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
- Department of Special Education and The Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Sarit Szpiro
- Department of Special Education, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
- Department of Special Education and The Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
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5
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Bierlich AM, Bloch C, Spyra T, Lanz C, Falter-Wagner CM, Vogeley K. An evaluation of the German version of the Sensory Perception Quotient from an expert by experience perspective. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1252277. [PMID: 38487661 PMCID: PMC10937587 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1252277] [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: 07/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/12/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Sensory processing is often altered in individuals with autism; thus, it is essential to develop reliable measurement tools to assess sensory perception. The Sensory Perception Quotient (SPQ) quantifies basic sensory sensitivities in adults via self-report. Adopting an expert by experience perspective, this study aimed to evaluate a German translation of the SPQ for its use in clinical and research applications, especially for autistic adults. 108 adults (n = 54 autistic) completed the German SPQ in an online assessment. A 92-item and a 35-item version of the German SPQ were analyzed for group differences and internal consistency. Our results show that adults with autism reported greater sensory sensitivity compared to non-autistic adults. Results further suggest good to excellent internal consistency for the 95-item and 35-item SPQ translations. This finding was supported by the correlative relationship between sensory sensitivity and autistic traits. These findings confirm the reliability of our SPQ translation, making it a suitable German assessment tool for basic sensory sensitivity in autistic adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Afton M. Bierlich
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital Munich, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Carola Bloch
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital Munich, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Timo Spyra
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Christian Lanz
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital Munich, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | | | - Kai Vogeley
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
- Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-3), Research Center Jülich, Jülich, Germany
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6
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Karsh N, Hartston M, Hadad BS. Atypical Impact of Action Effect Delay on Motor Performance in Autism. J Autism Dev Disord 2024:10.1007/s10803-023-06227-9. [PMID: 38316696 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-023-06227-9] [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: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 02/07/2024]
Abstract
Atypical sensory perception and motor impairments are primary features of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) that indicate atypical development and predict social and non-social challenges. However, their link is poorly understood. Sensory perception is often integrated with motor processes when a sensory effect is temporally contiguous with the motor response. Such sensory-motor coupling further improves motor behavior. Previous studies indicate alterations in sensory perception of action-effect temporal contiguity in ASD, which bares the question of how it may impact motor performance. People diagnosed with ASD and typically developed (TD) participants performed a speeded reaction-time task previously established to capture the facilitating impact of action's perceptual effect on motor response selection. The sensitivity of this mechanism to delays in the effect was measured, manipulating the action-effect temporal contiguity in a within-subject design. An immediate action effect (compared to a No-effect condition) facilitated response selection in the TD group. This facilitation effect was evident in the ASD group but did not show the typical sensitivity to the effect delay. While in the TD group, RT was shorter in the short (225ms) compared to the long (675ms) action effect delay condition, this distinguished pattern was absent in the ASD group. The findings provide supporting evidence that atypical motor performance in ASD results, at least in part, from an altered sensory perception of action effect temporal contiguity. We discuss the results in light of the reduced perceptual specialization account in ASD and its potential for undermining adaptive sensorimotor processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noam Karsh
- Department of Psychology, Tel-Hai Academic College, Upper Galilee, Israel.
- Special Population Advance Research and Clinical Center (SPARC), University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
| | - Marissa Hartston
- Special Population Advance Research and Clinical Center (SPARC), University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
- Department of Special Education, Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Bat-Sheva Hadad
- Special Population Advance Research and Clinical Center (SPARC), University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
- Department of Special Education, Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
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7
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Lulav-Bash T, Avidan G, Hadad BS. Refinement of face representations by exposure reveals different time scales of biases in face processing. Psychon Bull Rev 2024; 31:196-208. [PMID: 37495928 DOI: 10.3758/s13423-023-02314-1] [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] [Accepted: 05/12/2023] [Indexed: 07/28/2023]
Abstract
Experience modulates face processing abilities so that face discrimination and recognition improve with development, especially for more frequently experienced faces (e.g., own-race faces). Although advanced models describe how experience generally modulates perception, the mechanism by which exposure refines internal perceptual representations of faces is unknown. To address this issue, we investigated the effect of short- and long-term experienced stimulus history on face processing. Participants performed same-different judgments in a serial discrimination task where two consecutive faces were drawn from a distribution of morphed faces. Use of stimulus statistics was measured by testing the gravitation of face representations towards the mean of a range of morphed faces around which they were sampled (regression-to-the-mean). The results demonstrated regression of face representations towards the experienced mean and the retention of stimulus statistics over days. In trials where regression facilitated discrimination, the bias diminished the otherwise disadvantage of other-race over own-races faces. The dynamics of the perceptual bias, probed by trial-by-trial performance, further indicated different timescales of the bias, depending on perceptual expertise: people with weak face-recognition skills showed the use of a stable reference, built on long-term statistics accumulated over many trials, along with an updating of this reference by recent trials. In contrast, the strong face recognizers showed a different pattern where sequential effects mostly contributed to discrimination, with relatively minimal reliance on the long-term average for other-race faces. The findings suggest a mechanism by which exposure refines face representations and reveal, for the first time in adults, associations between levels of specialization of perceptual representations and the extent to which these representations become narrowly tuned.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tal Lulav-Bash
- Department of Special Education, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, 199 Abba Khoushy Ave, 3498838, Haifa, Israel
- Department of Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Galia Avidan
- Department of Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Bat-Sheva Hadad
- Department of Special Education, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, 199 Abba Khoushy Ave, 3498838, Haifa, Israel.
- Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
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8
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Gabay Y, Reinisch E, Even D, Binur N, Hadad BS. Intact Utilization of Contextual Information in Speech Categorization in Autism. J Autism Dev Disord 2023:10.1007/s10803-023-06106-3. [PMID: 37787847 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-023-06106-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/09/2023] [Indexed: 10/04/2023]
Abstract
Current theories of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) suggest atypical use of context in ASD, but little is known about how these atypicalities influence speech perception. We examined the influence of contextual information (lexical, spectral, and temporal) on phoneme categorization of people with ASD and in typically developed (TD) people. Across three experiments, we found that people with ASD used all types of contextual information for disambiguating speech sounds to the same extent as TD; yet they exhibited a shallower identification curve when phoneme categorization required temporal processing. Overall, the results suggest that the observed atypicalities in speech perception in ASD, including the reduced sensitivity observed here, cannot be attributed merely to the limited ability to utilize context during speech perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yafit Gabay
- Department of Special Education, University of Haifa, 199 Abba Khoushy Ave, Haifa, 3498838, Israel.
- Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center for the Study of Learning Disabilities, University of Haifa, 199 Abba Khoushy Ave, Haifa, 3498838, Israel.
| | - Eva Reinisch
- Acoustics Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Wohllebengasse 12-14, Vienna, 1040, Austria
| | - Dana Even
- Department of Special Education, University of Haifa, 199 Abba Khoushy Ave, Haifa, 3498838, Israel
- Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center for the Study of Learning Disabilities, University of Haifa, 199 Abba Khoushy Ave, Haifa, 3498838, Israel
| | - Nahal Binur
- Department of Special Education, University of Haifa, 199 Abba Khoushy Ave, Haifa, 3498838, Israel
- Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center for the Study of Learning Disabilities, University of Haifa, 199 Abba Khoushy Ave, Haifa, 3498838, Israel
| | - Bat-Sheva Hadad
- Department of Special Education, University of Haifa, 199 Abba Khoushy Ave, Haifa, 3498838, Israel
- Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center for the Study of Learning Disabilities, University of Haifa, 199 Abba Khoushy Ave, Haifa, 3498838, Israel
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9
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Cao R, Zhang N, Yu H, Webster PJ, Paul LK, Li X, Lin C, Wang S. Comprehensive Social Trait Judgments From Faces in Autism Spectrum Disorder. Psychol Sci 2023; 34:1121-1145. [PMID: 37671893 PMCID: PMC10626626 DOI: 10.1177/09567976231192236] [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: 12/20/2022] [Accepted: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 09/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Processing social information from faces is difficult for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, it remains unclear whether individuals with ASD make high-level social trait judgments from faces in the same way as neurotypical individuals. Here, we comprehensively addressed this question using naturalistic face images and representatively sampled traits. Despite similar underlying dimensional structures across traits, online adult participants with self-reported ASD showed different judgments and reduced specificity within each trait compared with neurotypical individuals. Deep neural networks revealed that these group differences were driven by specific types of faces and differential utilization of features within a face. Our results were replicated in well-characterized in-lab participants and partially generalized to more controlled face images (a preregistered study). By investigating social trait judgments in a broader population, including individuals with neurodevelopmental variations, we found important theoretical implications for the fundamental dimensions, variations, and potential behavioral consequences of social cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Runnan Cao
- Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis
- Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University
| | - Na Zhang
- Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University
| | - Hongbo Yu
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - Paula J. Webster
- Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, West Virginia University
| | - Lynn K. Paul
- Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology
| | - Xin Li
- Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University
| | - Chujun Lin
- Department of Psychology, University of California, San Diego
| | - Shuo Wang
- Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis
- Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University
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10
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Mazuz Y, Kessler Y, Ganel T. The BTPI: An online battery for measuring susceptibility to visual illusions. J Vis 2023; 23:2. [PMID: 37669069 PMCID: PMC10484025 DOI: 10.1167/jov.23.10.2] [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] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 07/31/2023] [Indexed: 09/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Visual illusions provide a powerful tool for probing the mechanisms that underlie perception. While most previous studies of visual illusions focused on average group-level performance, less attention has been devoted to individual differences in susceptibility to illusions. Unlike in other perceptual domains, in which there are established, validated tools to measure individual differences, such tools are not yet available in the domain of visual illusions. Here, we describe the development and validation of the BTPI (Ben-Gurion University Test for Perceptual Illusions), a new online battery designed to measure susceptibility to the influence of three prominent size illusions: the Ebbinghaus, the Ponzo, and the height-width illusions. The BTPI also measures perceptual resolution, reflected by the just noticeable difference (JND), to detect size differences in the context of each illusion. In Experiment 1 (N = 143), we examined performance in typical self-paced tasks, whereas in Experiment 2 (N = 69), we employed a fixed presentation duration paradigm. High test-retest reliability scores were found for all illusions, with little evidence for intercorrelations between different illusions. In addition, lower perceptual resolution (larger JND) was associated with a larger susceptibility to the illusory effect. The computerized task battery and analysis codes are freely available online.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yarden Mazuz
- Department of Psychology and School of Brain Sciences and Cognition, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel
| | - Yoav Kessler
- Department of Psychology and School of Brain Sciences and Cognition, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel
| | - Tzvi Ganel
- Department of Psychology and School of Brain Sciences and Cognition, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel
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11
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Pesthy O, Farkas K, Sapey-Triomphe LA, Guttengéber A, Komoróczy E, Janacsek K, Réthelyi JM, Németh D. Intact predictive processing in autistic adults: evidence from statistical learning. Sci Rep 2023; 13:11873. [PMID: 37481676 PMCID: PMC10363128 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-38708-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2023] [Accepted: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 07/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Impairment in predictive processes gained a lot of attention in recent years as an explanation for autistic symptoms. However, empirical evidence does not always underpin this framework. Thus, it is unclear what aspects of predictive processing are affected in autism spectrum disorder. In this study, we tested autistic adults on a task in which participants acquire probability-based regularities (that is, a statistical learning task). Twenty neurotypical and 22 autistic adults learned a probabilistic, temporally distributed regularity for about 40 min. Using frequentist and Bayesian methods, we found that autistic adults performed comparably to neurotypical adults, and the dynamics of learning did not differ between groups either. Thus, our study provides evidence for intact statistical learning in autistic adults. Furthermore, we discuss potential ways this result can extend the scope of the predictive processing framework, noting that atypical processing might not always mean a deficit in performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Orsolya Pesthy
- Doctoral School of Psychology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary
- Institute of Psychology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary
- Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Kinga Farkas
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Laurie-Anne Sapey-Triomphe
- Lyon Neuroscience Research Center (CRNL), INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Lyon, France
| | - Anna Guttengéber
- Institute of Psychology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Eszter Komoróczy
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Karolina Janacsek
- Institute of Psychology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary
- Faculty of Education, Health and Human Sciences, Centre for Thinking and Learning, School of Human Sciences, Institute for Lifecourse Development, University of Greenwich, London, UK
| | - János M Réthelyi
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Dezső Németh
- Lyon Neuroscience Research Center (CRNL), INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Lyon, France.
- BML-NAP Research Group, Institute of Psychology & Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology, Eötvös Loránd University & Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Budapest, Hungary.
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12
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Noel JP, Angelaki DE. A theory of autism bridging across levels of description. Trends Cogn Sci 2023; 27:631-641. [PMID: 37183143 PMCID: PMC10330321 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2023.04.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2022] [Revised: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
Autism impacts a wide range of behaviors and neural functions. As such, theories of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are numerous and span different levels of description, from neurocognitive to molecular. We propose how existent behavioral, computational, algorithmic, and neural accounts of ASD may relate to one another. Specifically, we argue that ASD may be cast as a disorder of causal inference (computational level). This computation relies on marginalization, which is thought to be subserved by divisive normalization (algorithmic level). In turn, divisive normalization may be impaired by excitatory-to-inhibitory imbalances (neural implementation level). We also discuss ASD within similar frameworks, those of predictive coding and circular inference. Together, we hope to motivate work unifying the different accounts of ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Paul Noel
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Dora E Angelaki
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA; Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, New York, NY, USA
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13
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Chokron S, Dutton GN. From vision to cognition: potential contributions of cerebral visual impairment to neurodevelopmental disorders. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2023; 130:409-424. [PMID: 36547695 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-022-02572-8] [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] [Received: 08/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Vision has a crucial role to play in human development and functioning. It is, therefore, not surprising that vision plays a fundamental role in the development of the child. As a consequence, an alteration in visual function is, therefore, likely to hinder the child's development. Although ocular disorders are well known, diagnosed and taken into account, cerebral visual impairments (CVI) resulting from post-chiasmatic damage are largely underdiagnosed. However, among the disorders resulting from an episode of perinatal asphyxia and/or associated with prematurity, or neonatal hypoglycaemia, CVIs are prominent. In this article, we focus on the role of the possible effects of CVI on a child's learning abilities, leading to major difficulty in disentangling the consequences of CVI from other neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD) such as dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), developmental coordination disorder (DCD) and autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Although we focus here on the possible overlap between children with CVI and children with other NDD, De Witt et al. (Wit et al. Ear Hear 39:1-19, 2018) have raised exactly the same question regarding children with auditory processing disorders (the equivalent of CVI in the auditory modality). We underline how motor, social and cognitive development as well as academic success can be impaired by CVI and raise the question of the need for systematic evaluation for disorders of vision, visual perception and cognition in all children presenting with a NDD and/or previously born under adverse neurological conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sylvie Chokron
- INCC, CNRS, UMR8002, Université de Paris-Cité, Paris, France.
- Institut de Neuropsychologie, Neurovision et Neurocognition, Hôpital-Fondation A. de Rothschild, Paris, France.
| | - Gordon N Dutton
- Department of Vision Science, Glasgow Caledonian University, Glasgow, UK
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Hartston M, Avidan G, Pertzov Y, Hadad BS. Weaker face recognition in adults with autism arises from perceptually based alterations. Autism Res 2023; 16:723-733. [PMID: 36691922 DOI: 10.1002/aur.2893] [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: 07/05/2022] [Accepted: 01/06/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Face recognition has been shown to be impaired in autism spectrum disorders (ASD). However, it is still debated whether these face processing deficits arise from perceptually based alterations. We tested individuals with ASD and matched typically developing (TD) individuals using a delayed estimation task in which a single target face was shown either upright or inverted. Participants selected a face that best resembled the target face out of a cyclic space of morphed faces. To enable the disentanglement of visual from mnemonic processing, reports were required either following a 1 and 6 second retention interval, or simultaneously while the target face was still visible. Individuals with ASD made significantly more errors than TD individuals in both the simultaneous and delayed intervals, indicating that face recognition deficits in autism are also perceptual rather than strictly memory based. Moreover, individuals with ASD exhibited weaker inversion effects than the TD individuals, on all retention intervals. This finding, that was mostly evident in precision errors, suggests that contrary to the more precise representations of upright faces in TD individuals, individuals with ASD exhibit similar levels of precision for inverted and upright faces, for both simultaneous and delayed conditions. These results suggest that weakened memory for faces reported in ASD may be secondary to an underlying perceptual deficit in face processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marissa Hartston
- Department of Special Education, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Galia Avidan
- Department of Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Yoni Pertzov
- Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Bat-Sheva Hadad
- Department of Special Education, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.,Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Centre, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
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