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Zhu L, Wang JZ, Lee W, Wyble B. Incorporating simulated spatial context information improves the effectiveness of contrastive learning models. PATTERNS (NEW YORK, N.Y.) 2024; 5:100964. [PMID: 38800363 PMCID: PMC11117056 DOI: 10.1016/j.patter.2024.100964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2023] [Revised: 05/03/2023] [Accepted: 03/04/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
Visual learning often occurs in a specific context, where an agent acquires skills through exploration and tracking of its location in a consistent environment. The historical spatial context of the agent provides a similarity signal for self-supervised contrastive learning. We present a unique approach, termed environmental spatial similarity (ESS), that complements existing contrastive learning methods. Using images from simulated, photorealistic environments as an experimental setting, we demonstrate that ESS outperforms traditional instance discrimination approaches. Moreover, sampling additional data from the same environment substantially improves accuracy and provides new augmentations. ESS allows remarkable proficiency in room classification and spatial prediction tasks, especially in unfamiliar environments. This learning paradigm has the potential to enable rapid visual learning in agents operating in new environments with unique visual characteristics. Potentially transformative applications span from robotics to space exploration. Our proof of concept demonstrates improved efficiency over methods that rely on extensive, disconnected datasets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lizhen Zhu
- Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Area, College of Information Sciences and Technology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - James Z. Wang
- Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Area, College of Information Sciences and Technology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
- Human-Computer Interaction Area, College of Information Sciences and Technology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
- Department of Communication and Media, School of Social Sciences and Humanities, Loughborough University, Loughborough, Leicestershire, UK
| | - Wonseuk Lee
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Brad Wyble
- Department of Psychology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
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2
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Viktorsson C, Portugal AM, Taylor MJ, Ronald A, Falck-Ytter T. Sustained looking at faces at 5 months of age is associated with socio-communicative skills in the second year of life. INFANCY 2024; 29:459-478. [PMID: 38358338 DOI: 10.1111/infa.12586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/16/2024]
Abstract
Efficiently processing information from faces in infancy is foundational for nonverbal communication. We studied individual differences in 5-month-old infants' (N = 517) sustained attention to faces and preference for emotional faces. We assessed the contribution of genetic and environmental influences to individual differences in these gaze behaviors, and the association between these traits and other concurrent and later phenotypes. We found an association between the mean duration of looking at a face (before looking away from it) at 5 months and socio-communicative abilities at 14 months (β = 0.17, 95% CI: 0.08; 0.26, p < 0.001). Sustained attention to faces predicted socio-communicative abilities over and above variance captured by mean fixation duration. We also found a statistically significant but weak tendency to prefer looking at smiling faces (relative to neutral faces), but no indication that variability in this behavior was explained by genetic effects. Moderate heritability was found for sustained attention to faces (A = 0.23, CI: 0.06; 0.38), while shared environmental influences were non-significant for both phenotypes. These findings suggest that sustained looking at individual faces before looking away is a developmentally significant 'social attention' phenotype in infancy, characterized by moderate heritability and a specific relation to later socio-communicative abilities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte Viktorsson
- Development and Neurodiversity Lab, Department of Psychology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Ana Maria Portugal
- Development and Neurodiversity Lab, Department of Psychology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (KIND), Division of Neuropsychiatry, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Mark J Taylor
- Department of Medical Epidemiology & Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Angelica Ronald
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Surrey, Surrey, UK
| | - Terje Falck-Ytter
- Development and Neurodiversity Lab, Department of Psychology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (KIND), Division of Neuropsychiatry, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study, Uppsala, Sweden
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3
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Yıldırım Demirdöğen E, Akıncı MA, Bozkurt A, Turan B, Esin İS, Donbaloğlu MA, Bingöl İ, Tümüklü Özyer G, Kılıç U, Dursun OB. Objective Parameters in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Eye and Head Movements. J Atten Disord 2024; 28:982-991. [PMID: 38214185 DOI: 10.1177/10870547231221746] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE We aimed to evaluate eye and head movements, which are objective parameters in ADHD. Method: While the children were watching the course video task, which included the relevant (teacher and smart board) and irrelevant (any regions outside the relevant area) areas of interest, their eye movements were evaluated through eye tracking, and video recordings were made simultaneous. Head position estimation was made using through video recordings. The proportion of total fixation duration on areas of interest (PFDAOI) and saccade count, amplitude, velocity for eye movements, number of total head movements and angular change of head movement in x-y-z axes for head movements were compared. RESULTS Children with ADHD had lower PFDAOI on the relevant area, and had more saccade and head movements The angular change of head movement in the x-axis was higher in the ADHD group. CONCLUSION In the assessment of ADHD, the eye and head movements may be particulary useful.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Bahadır Turan
- Karadeniz Technical University Medicine Faculty, Trabzon, Turkey
| | | | | | - İsa Bingöl
- Bayburt University Distance Education Application and Research Center, Turkey
| | | | - Uğur Kılıç
- Atatürk University Computer Engineering Department, Erzurum, Turkey
| | - Onur Burak Dursun
- Turkish Ministry of Health Autism, Mental Special Needs and Rare Diseases Department, Ankara, Turkey
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4
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Werchan DM, Hendrix CL, Hume AM, Zhang M, Thomason ME, Brito NH. Effects of prenatal psychosocial stress and COVID-19 infection on infant attention and socioemotional development. Pediatr Res 2024; 95:1279-1287. [PMID: 37752245 PMCID: PMC10965506 DOI: 10.1038/s41390-023-02807-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Revised: 06/15/2023] [Accepted: 07/20/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically altered the psychosocial environment of pregnant women and new mothers. In addition, prenatal infection is a known risk factor for altered fetal development. Here we examine joint effects of maternal psychosocial stress and COVID-19 infection during pregnancy on infant attention at 6 months postpartum. METHOD One-hundred and sixty-seven pregnant mothers and infants (40% non-White; n = 71 females) were recruited in New York City (n = 50 COVID+, n = 117 COVID-). Infants' attentional processing was assessed at 6 months, and socioemotional function and neurodevelopmental risk were evaluated at 12 months. RESULTS Maternal psychosocial stress and COVID-19 infection during pregnancy jointly predicted infant attention at 6 months. In mothers reporting positive COVID-19 infection, higher prenatal psychosocial stress was associated with lower infant attention at 6 months. Exploratory analyses indicated that infant attention in turn predicted socioemotional function and neurodevelopmental risk at 12 months. CONCLUSIONS These data suggest that maternal psychosocial stress and COVID-19 infection during pregnancy may have joint effects on infant attention at 6 months. This work adds to a growing literature on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on infant development, and may point to maternal psychosocial stress as an important target for intervention. IMPACT This study found that elevated maternal psychosocial stress and COVID-19 infection during pregnancy jointly predicted lower infant attention scores at 6 months, which is a known marker of risk for neurodevelopmental disorder. In turn, infant attention predicted socioemotional function and risk for neurodevelopmental disorder at 12 months. These data suggest that maternal psychosocial stress may modulate the effects of gestational infection on neurodevelopment and highlight malleable targets for intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Denise M Werchan
- Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, NYU Langone, New York, NY, USA.
| | | | - Amy M Hume
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Margaret Zhang
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Moriah E Thomason
- Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, NYU Langone, New York, NY, USA
| | - Natalie H Brito
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA
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5
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Gonçalves JL, Fuertes M, Silva S, Lopes-dos-Santos P, Ferreira-Santos F. Differential effects of attachment security on visual fixation to facial expressions of emotion in 14-month-old infants: an eye-tracking study. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1302657. [PMID: 38449748 PMCID: PMC10917067 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1302657] [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: 09/26/2023] [Accepted: 01/10/2024] [Indexed: 03/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction Models of attachment and information processing suggest that the attention infants allocate to social information might occur in a schema-driven processing manner according to their attachment pattern. A major source of social information for infants consists of facial expressions of emotion. We tested for differences in attention to facial expressions and emotional discrimination between infants classified as securely attached (B), insecure-avoidant (A), and insecure-resistant (C). Methods Sixty-one 14-month-old infants participated in the Strange Situation Procedure and an experimental task of Visual Habituation and Visual Paired-Comparison Task (VPC). In the Habituation phase, a Low-Arousal Happy face (habituation face) was presented followed by a VPC task of 6 trials composed of two contrasting emotional faces always involving the same actress: the one used in habituation (trial old face) and a new one (trial new face) portraying changes in valence (Low-Arousal Angry face), arousal (High-Arousal Happy face), or valence + arousal (High-Arousal Angry face). Measures of fixation time (FT) and number of fixations (FC) were obtained for the habituation face, the trial old face, the trial new face, and the difference between the trial old face and the trial new face using an eye-tracking system. Results We found a higher FT and FC for the trial new face when compared with the trial old face, regardless of the emotional condition (valence, arousal, valence + arousal contrasts), suggesting that 14-month-old infants were able to discriminate different emotional faces. However, this effect differed according to attachment pattern: resistant-attached infants (C) had significantly higher FT and FC for the new face than patterns B and A, indicating they may remain hypervigilant toward emotional change. On the contrary, avoidant infants (A) revealed significantly longer looking times to the trial old face, suggesting overall avoidance of novel expressions and thus less sensitivity to emotional change. Discussion Overall, these findings corroborate that attachment is associated with infants' social information processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joana L. Gonçalves
- Center for Research in Psychology for Positive Development, Lusíada University, Porto, Portugal
| | - Marina Fuertes
- Center for Psychology at University of Porto, Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Escola Superior de Educação, Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Susana Silva
- Neurocognition and Language Research Group, Center for Psychology at University of Porto, Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Pedro Lopes-dos-Santos
- Center for Psychology at University of Porto, Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Faculty of Psychology and Education Science, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Fernando Ferreira-Santos
- Faculty of Psychology and Education Science, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Laboratory of Neuropsychophysiology, Faculty of Psychology and Education Science, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
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Lockwood Estrin G, Mason L, Arora R, Bhavnani S, Dasgupta J, Gulati S, Gliga T, Johnson MH. Attention control in autism: Eye-tracking findings from pre-school children in a low- and middle-income country setting. AUTISM : THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND PRACTICE 2024; 28:43-57. [PMID: 36700615 DOI: 10.1177/13623613221149541] [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] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
LAY ABSTRACT The development of cognitive processes, such as attention control and learning, has been suggested to be altered in children with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. However, nearly all of our understanding of the development of these cognitive processes comes from studies with school-aged or older children in high-income countries, and from research conducted in a controlled laboratory environment, thereby restricting the potential generalisability of results and away from the majority of the world's population. We need to expand our research to investigate abilities beyond these limited settings. We address shortcomings in the literature by (1) studying attention control and learning in an understudied population of children in a low- and middle-income country setting in India, (2) focusing research on a critical younger age group of children and (3) using portable eye-tracking technology that can be taken into communities and healthcare settings to increase the accessibility of research in hard-to-reach populations. Our results provide novel evidence on differences in attention control and learning responses in groups of children with and without a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. We show that learning responses in children that we assessed through a portable eye-tracking task, called the 'antisaccade task', may be specific to autism. This suggests that the methods we use may have the potential to identify and assess autism-specific traits across development, and be used in research in low-resource settings.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Mark H Johnson
- Birkbeck, University of London, UK
- University of Cambridge, UK
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7
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LaTourrette AS, Novack MA, Waxman SR. Longer looks for language: Novel labels lengthen fixation duration for 2-year-old children. J Exp Child Psychol 2023; 236:105754. [PMID: 37544069 PMCID: PMC10529313 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2023.105754] [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: 03/20/2023] [Revised: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 07/14/2023] [Indexed: 08/08/2023]
Abstract
The language infants hear guides their visual attention; infants look more to objects when they are labeled. However, it is unclear whether labels also change the way infants attend to and encode those objects-that is, whether hearing an object label changes infants' online visual processing of that object. Here, we examined this question in the context of novel word learning, asking whether nuanced measures of visual attention, specifically fixation durations, change when 2-year-olds hear a label for a novel object (e.g., "Look at the dax") compared with when they hear a non-labeling phrase (e.g., "Look at that"). Results confirmed that children visually process objects differently when they are labeled, using longer fixations to examine labeled objects versus unlabeled objects. Children also showed robust retention of these labels on a subsequent test trial, suggesting that these longer fixations accompanied successful word learning. Moreover, when children were presented with the same objects again in a silent re-exposure phase, children's fixations were again longer when looking at the previously labeled objects. Finally, fixation duration at first exposure and silent re-exposure were correlated, indicating a persistent effect of language on visual processing. These effects of hearing labels on visual attention point to the critical interactions involved in cross-modal learning and emphasize the benefits of looking beyond aggregate measures of attention to identify cognitive learning mechanisms during infancy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Miriam A Novack
- Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
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8
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Beckner AG, Arnold CD, Bragg MG, Caswell BL, Chen Z, Cox K, DeBolt MC, George M, Maleta K, Stewart C, Oakes LM, Prado E. Examining infants' visual paired comparison performance in the US and rural Malawi. Dev Sci 2023:e13439. [PMID: 37653622 PMCID: PMC10986336 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13439] [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: 08/30/2022] [Revised: 07/22/2023] [Accepted: 07/30/2023] [Indexed: 09/02/2023]
Abstract
Measures of attention and memory were evaluated in 6- to 9-month-old infants from two diverse contexts. One sample consisted of African infants residing in rural Malawi (N = 228, 118 girls, 110 boys). The other sample consisted of racially diverse infants residing in suburban California (N = 48, 24 girls, 24 boys). Infants were tested in an eye-tracking version of the visual paired comparison procedure and were shown racially familiar faces. The eye tracking data were parsed into individual looks, revealing that both groups of infants showed significant memory performance. However, how a look was operationally defined impacted some-but not other-measures of infant VPC performance. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: In both the US and Malawi, 6- to 9-month-old infants showed evidence of memory for faces they had previously viewed during a familiarization period. Infant age was associated with peak look duration and memory performance in both contexts. Different operational definitions of a look yielded consistent findings for peak look duration and novelty preference scores-but not shift rate. Operationalization of look-defined measures is an important consideration for studies of infants in different cultural contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron G. Beckner
- College of Human Ecology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
| | - Charles D. Arnold
- Department of Nutrition and Institute for Global Nutrition, University of California, Davis, California, USA
| | - Megan G. Bragg
- Department of Nutrition and Institute for Global Nutrition, University of California, Davis, California, USA
| | - Bess L. Caswell
- Department of Nutrition and Institute for Global Nutrition, University of California, Davis, California, USA
| | - Zhijun Chen
- Department of Psychology and Center for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, California, USA
| | - Katherine Cox
- Department of Nutrition and Institute for Global Nutrition, University of California, Davis, California, USA
| | - Michaela C. DeBolt
- Department of Psychology and Center for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, California, USA
| | - Matthews George
- School of Global and Public Health, Kamuzu University of Health Sciences, Blantyre, Malawi
| | - Kenneth Maleta
- School of Global and Public Health, Kamuzu University of Health Sciences, Blantyre, Malawi
| | - Christine Stewart
- Department of Nutrition and Institute for Global Nutrition, University of California, Davis, California, USA
| | - Lisa M. Oakes
- Department of Psychology and Center for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, California, USA
| | - Elizabeth Prado
- Department of Nutrition and Institute for Global Nutrition, University of California, Davis, California, USA
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9
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Rigato S, Stets M, Charalambous S, Dvergsdal H, Holmboe K. Infant visual preference for the mother's face and longitudinal associations with emotional reactivity in the first year of life. Sci Rep 2023; 13:10263. [PMID: 37355764 PMCID: PMC10290679 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-37448-8] [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: 02/22/2023] [Accepted: 06/21/2023] [Indexed: 06/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Past research has focused on infants' visual preference for the mother's face, however it is still unknown how these responses change over time and what factors associate with such changes. A longitudinal study (N ~ 60) was conducted to investigate the trajectories of infant visual preference for the mother's face and how these are related to the development of emotional reactivity in the first year of life. Two face stimuli (i.e., the infant's mother and a consistent stranger face) were used in a visual preference task at 2 weeks, 4, 6, and 9 months of age. At each time point, mothers were asked to complete a measure of infant temperament via standardised questionnaires. Our results show that while at 2 weeks, 4 months and 9 months of age infants looked equally at both faces, infants at 6 months looked significantly longer at their mother's face. We also observed prospective associations with emotional reactivity variables so that infants who looked longer at the mother's face at 6 months showed higher falling reactivity, i.e. a better ability to recover from distress, at 9 months. We discuss these findings in light of the roles that both infant development and the caregiver play in emerging emotion regulation capacities during the first year of life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Rigato
- Centre for Brain Science, Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Wivenhoe Park, Colchester, CO4 3SQ, UK.
| | - Manuela Stets
- Centre for Brain Science, Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Wivenhoe Park, Colchester, CO4 3SQ, UK
| | - Sophia Charalambous
- Centre for Brain Science, Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Wivenhoe Park, Colchester, CO4 3SQ, UK
| | - Henrik Dvergsdal
- Business Administration Programme, Nord University, Bodø, Norway
| | - Karla Holmboe
- School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
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Musso MF, Moyano S, Rico-Picó J, Conejero Á, Ballesteros-Duperón MÁ, Cascallar EC, Rueda MR. Predicting Effortful Control at 3 Years of Age from Measures of Attention and Home Environment in Infancy: A Machine Learning Approach. CHILDREN (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 10:982. [PMID: 37371215 DOI: 10.3390/children10060982] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2023] [Revised: 05/26/2023] [Accepted: 05/29/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023]
Abstract
Effortful control (EC) is a dimension of temperament that encompass individual differences in self-regulation and the control of reactivity. Much research suggests that EC has a strong foundation on the development of executive attention, but increasing evidence also shows a significant contribution of the rearing environment to individual differences in EC. The aim of the current study was to predict the development of EC at 36 months of age from early attentional and environmental measures taken in infancy using a machine learning approach. A sample of 78 infants participated in a longitudinal study running three waves of data collection at 6, 9, and 36 months of age. Attentional tasks were administered at 6 months of age, with two additional measures (i.e., one attentional measure and another self-restraint measure) being collected at 9 months of age. Parents reported household environment variables during wave 1, and their child's EC at 36 months. A machine-learning algorithm was implemented to identify children with low EC scores at 36 months of age. An "attention only" model showed greater predictive sensitivity than the "environmental only" model. However, a model including both attentional and environmental variables was able to classify the groups (Low-EC vs. Average-to-High EC) with 100% accuracy. Sensitivity analyses indicate that socio-economic variables together with attention control processes at 6 months, and self-restraint capacity at 9 months, are the most important predictors of EC. Results suggest a foundational role of executive attention processes in the development of EC in complex interactions with household environments and provide a new tool to identify early markers of socio-emotional regulation development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariel F Musso
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
- Interdisciplinary Center for Research in Mathematical and Experimental Psychology (CIIPME), National Council for Scientific and Technical Research (CONICET), Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires 1040, Argentina
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Argentina de la Empresa (UADE), Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires 1073, Argentina
- Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
| | - Sebastián Moyano
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
- Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
| | - Josué Rico-Picó
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
- Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
| | - Ángela Conejero
- Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
- Department of Educational and Developmental Psychology, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
| | - M Ángeles Ballesteros-Duperón
- Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
- Department of Psychobiology, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
| | - Eduardo C Cascallar
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - M Rosario Rueda
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
- Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
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11
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Joseph HM, Lorenzo NE, Fisher N, Novick DR, Gibson C, Rothenberger SD, Foust JE, Chronis-Tuscano A. Research Review: A systematic review and meta-analysis of infant and toddler temperament as predictors of childhood attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 2023; 64:715-735. [PMID: 36599815 PMCID: PMC10404471 DOI: 10.1111/jcpp.13753] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder with onset as early as preschool and impairment across the lifespan. Temperament factors, specifically those that theoretically map onto ADHD symptoms, may be early markers of risk for developing later childhood ADHD that could be identifiable in infancy or toddlerhood. This meta-analysis examined the associations between these early temperamental factors and later symptoms and diagnosis of ADHD and mapped early temperament constructs onto the three ADHD symptom dimensions. METHODS A systemic review of the literature was conducted to identify prospective longitudinal studies that included theoretically relevant temperament constructs (sustained attention, activity level, inhibition, and negative emotionality) examined from birth to 36 months old and ADHD (symptoms or diagnosis) in preschool or childhood. The association between each temperament construct and ADHD outcomes was examined using pooled standardized estimates in meta-analyses. RESULTS Forty-eight articles (n = 112,716 infants/toddlers) prospectively examined temperament and the relation to childhood ADHD symptoms or diagnosis. Activity level (k = 18) in infancy and toddlerhood was moderately associated with childhood ADHD (r = .39, CI = 0.27, 0.51, p < .001). Moderate effect sizes were also observed for sustained attention (k = 9; r = -.28, CI = -0.42, -0.12, p < .001) and negative emotionality (k = 33; r = .25, CI = 0.16, 0.34, p < .001) with ADHD. The specificity of each temperament construct for later ADHD symptom dimensions was such that activity level and negative emotionality were predictive of all three symptom dimensions (i.e., inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity, and combined), whereas sustained attention was only associated with combined symptoms. CONCLUSIONS Infant and toddler temperament is an early risk factor for the development of childhood ADHD that could be utilized for early intervention identification. Yet, this systematic review found that relatively few prospective longitudinal studies have examined sustained attention (k = 9) and inhibition (k = 15) in infancy and toddlerhood in relation to later ADHD highlighting the need for further research.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Nicole E. Lorenzo
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, MD
- Department of Psychology, American University, Washington, DC
| | - Nadiyah Fisher
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
| | | | - Cassandra Gibson
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
| | | | - Jill E Foust
- Health Sciences Library System, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
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12
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Rolland M, Lyon-Caen S, Thomsen C, Sakhi AK, Sabaredzovic A, Bayat S, Slama R, Méary D, Philippat C. Effects of early exposure to phthalates on cognitive development and visual behavior at 24 months. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2023; 219:115068. [PMID: 36528043 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2022.115068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2022] [Revised: 12/07/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Studies focusing on the neurodevelopmental effects of phthalates seldom consider exposure during infancy, a critical period for brain development. Most rely on parent-completed questionnaires to assess child neurodevelopment, which may be subject to reporting error. We studied the associations between prenatal and infancy exposure to phthalates and objective measures of neurodevelopment at the age of two. METHODS We relied on 151 mother-child pairs from the SEPAGES mother-child cohort. Women were asked to collect three spot urine samples per day over seven consecutive days during the second (median: 18.0 gestational weeks) and third (median: 34.2 gestational weeks) trimesters of pregnancy. They then collected one urine sample per day over seven consecutive days from their infants around the age of 12 months. Metabolites of phthalates and non-phthalate plasticizers were measured in within-subject and within-period pools of repeated urine samples. Eye tracking tasks were performed at two years allowing to compute four indicators linked with cognitive development and visual behavior: mean fixation duration, novelty preference, percent time spent looking at the eyes and mean reaction time. RESULTS Pre-natal exposure to monobenzyl phthalate at the second and third trimesters was associated with shorter fixation durations. In models allowing for interaction with child sex, these associations were only observed among girls. Exposure to di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate at the third but not the second trimester was associated with increased time spent looking at a novel face and eyes. We observed faster reaction times and decreased time spent looking at the eyes in a face recognition task, with increased post-natal exposure to monoethyl, mono-iso-butyl and mono-n-butyl phthalates. DISCUSSION Relying on improved exposure assessment, we highlighted associations of pre- and post-natal exposure to phthalates with indicators derived from eye tracking tasks, mainly in girls. Some of these indicators have been affected in individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthieu Rolland
- Team of Environmental Epidemiology Applied to Reproduction and Respiratory Health, Institute for Advanced Biosciences (IAB), Grenoble Alpes University, Inserm, CNRS, 38700 La Tronche, France
| | - Sarah Lyon-Caen
- Team of Environmental Epidemiology Applied to Reproduction and Respiratory Health, Institute for Advanced Biosciences (IAB), Grenoble Alpes University, Inserm, CNRS, 38700 La Tronche, France
| | | | | | | | - Sam Bayat
- Department of Pulmonology and Physiology, CHU Grenoble Alpes, Grenoble, France
| | - Rémy Slama
- Team of Environmental Epidemiology Applied to Reproduction and Respiratory Health, Institute for Advanced Biosciences (IAB), Grenoble Alpes University, Inserm, CNRS, 38700 La Tronche, France
| | - David Méary
- Laboratoire de Psychologie et Neurocognition, LPNC, UMR 5105, Université Grenoble Alpes, Grenoble, France
| | - Claire Philippat
- Team of Environmental Epidemiology Applied to Reproduction and Respiratory Health, Institute for Advanced Biosciences (IAB), Grenoble Alpes University, Inserm, CNRS, 38700 La Tronche, France.
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13
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Zihl J, Unterberger L, Lippenberger M. Visual and cognitive profiles in children with and without cerebral visual impairment. BRITISH JOURNAL OF VISUAL IMPAIRMENT 2023. [DOI: 10.1177/02646196221149564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Reliable differentiation of visual-perceptual difficulties in children with and without cerebral visual impairment (CVI) can often pose a diagnostic challenge. We, therefore, assessed the visual-perceptual profile in 94 children with and 77 children without suspected CVI between the ages of 8 and 17 years in a non-clinical setting, using a screening questionnaire and standardized visual-perceptual tests. Children with suspected CVI reported more frequently greater visual difficulties, had lower visual acuity, and were significantly impaired in visual search tests, in visual form and object perception, in visual space perception, and in visual text processing. There were no significant differences between groups in stereopsis, fixation stability, motility, horizontal saccadic eye movements, and convergence and accommodation. Cognitive performance in auditory attention and verbal short-term and working memory was similar in both groups. Our results indicate that the use of an appropriate questionnaire and specific visual-perceptual tests enables valid diagnostic detection of CVI. The additional use of cognitive tests also allows differentiation between primary and secondary impairments in visual perception.
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14
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Moyano S, Conejero Á, Fernández M, Serrano F, Rueda MR. Development of visual attention control in early childhood: Associations with temperament and home environment. Front Psychol 2022; 13:1069478. [PMID: 36619065 PMCID: PMC9811174 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1069478] [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: 10/13/2022] [Accepted: 11/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Endogenous visual attention orienting is early available from infancy. It shows a steady development during the preschool period towards monitoring and managing executive attention to optimize the interplay between environmental contingencies and internal goals. The current study aims at understanding this transition from basic forms of endogenous control of visual orienting towards the engagement of executive attention, as well as their association with individual differences in temperament and home environment. A total of 150 children between 2 and 4 years of age were evaluated in a Visual Sequence Learning task, measuring visual anticipations in easy (context-free) and complex (context-dependent) stimuli transitions. Results showed age to be a predictor of a reduction in exogenous attention, as well as increased abilities to attempt to anticipate and to correctly anticipate in complex transitions. Home chaos predicted more complex correct anticipations, suggesting that the exposure to more unpredictable environments could benefit learning in context-dependent settings. Finally, temperamental surgency was found to be positively related to sustained attention in the task. Results are informative of age differences in visual attention control during toddlerhood and early childhood, and their association with temperament and home environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastián Moyano
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain,Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC), University of Granada, Granada, Spain,*Correspondence: Sebastián Moyano,
| | - Ángela Conejero
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - María Fernández
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Francisca Serrano
- Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC), University of Granada, Granada, Spain,Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - M. Rosario Rueda
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain,Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC), University of Granada, Granada, Spain
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15
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Gharib A, Thompson BL. Analysis and novel methods for capture of normative eye-tracking data in 2.5-month old infants. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0278423. [PMID: 36490239 PMCID: PMC9733894 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0278423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2022] [Accepted: 11/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Development of attention systems is essential for both cognitive and social behavior maturation. Visual behavior has been used to assess development of these attention systems. Yet, given its importance, there is a notable lack of literature detailing successful methods and procedures for using eye-tracking in early infancy to assess oculomotor and attention dynamics. Here we show that eye-tracking technology can be used to automatically record and assess visual behavior in infants as young as 2.5 months, and present normative data describing fixation and saccade behavior at this age. Features of oculomotor dynamics were analyzed from 2.5-month old infants who viewed videos depicting live action, cartoons, geometric shapes, social and non-social scenes. Of the 54 infants enrolled, 50 infants successfully completed the eye-tracking task and high-quality data was collected for 32 of those infants. We demonstrate that modifications specifically tailored for the infant population allowed for consistent tracking of pupil and corneal reflection and minimal data loss. Additionally, we found consistent fixation and saccade behaviors across the entire six-minute duration of the videos, indicating that this is a feasible task for 2.5-month old infants. Moreover, normative oculomotor metrics for a free-viewing task in 2.5-month old infants are documented for the first time as a result of this high-quality data collection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alma Gharib
- Department of Computer Science, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
- Program in Developmental Neuroscience and Neurogenetics, The Saban Research Institute and Department of Pediatrics at Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Barbara L. Thompson
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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16
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Pueyo V, Yam JCS, Perez-Roche T, Balasanyan V, Ortin M, Garcia G, Prieto E, Pham C, Gutierrez D, Castillo O, Masia B, Alejandre A, Bakkali M, Ciprés M, Esteban-Ibañez E, Fanlo-Zarazaga A, Gonzalez I, Gutiérrez-Luna IZK, Pan X, Pinilla J, Romero-Sanz M, Sanchez-huerto V, Vilella M, Tinh NX, Hiep NX, Zhang X. Development of oculomotor control throughout childhood: A multicenter and multiethnic study. J Vis 2022; 22:4. [DOI: 10.1167/jov.22.13.4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Victoria Pueyo
- Ophthalmology Department, Miguel Servet University Hospital, Zaragoza, Spain
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
| | | | | | | | - Marta Ortin
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
- I3A Institute for Research in Engineering, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Gerardo Garcia
- Hospital Luis Sánchez Bulnes, Asociación Para Evitar la Ceguera (APEC), Mexico DF, Mexico
| | - Esther Prieto
- Ophthalmology Department, Miguel Servet University Hospital, Zaragoza, Spain
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Chau Pham
- National Institute of Ophthalmology, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Diego Gutierrez
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
- I3A Institute for Research in Engineering, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Olimpia Castillo
- Ophthalmology Department, Miguel Servet University Hospital, Zaragoza, Spain
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Belen Masia
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
- I3A Institute for Research in Engineering, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Adrian Alejandre
- I3A Institute for Research in Engineering, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Mohamed Bakkali
- Ophthalmology Department, Miguel Servet University Hospital, Zaragoza, Spain
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Marta Ciprés
- Lozano Blesa University Hospital, Zaragoza, Spain
| | | | - Alvaro Fanlo-Zarazaga
- Ophthalmology Department, Miguel Servet University Hospital, Zaragoza, Spain
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Inmaculada Gonzalez
- Ophthalmology Department, Miguel Servet University Hospital, Zaragoza, Spain
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
| | | | - Xian Pan
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Juan Pinilla
- Ophthalmology Department, Miguel Servet University Hospital, Zaragoza, Spain
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
| | - María Romero-Sanz
- Ophthalmology Department, Miguel Servet University Hospital, Zaragoza, Spain
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Valeria Sanchez-huerto
- Hospital Luis Sánchez Bulnes, Asociación Para Evitar la Ceguera (APEC), Mexico 21 DF, Mexico
| | - Marina Vilella
- Aragon Institute for Health Research (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
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17
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Yıldırım Demirdöğen E, Esin İS, Turan B, Dursun OB. Assessing sustained attention of children with ADHD in a class flow video task. Nord J Psychiatry 2022; 76:497-506. [PMID: 35521909 DOI: 10.1080/08039488.2022.2064545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The aim of the study was to evaluate sustained attention performance of children with ADHD and effect of distractors on sustained attention through an eye-tracking during a class-flow video task. METHOD Data were collected using an eye-tracking during a class-flow task conducted with 60 children (ADHD and control groups). Two areas of interest were determined in the task, these are relevant (teacher and whiteboard) and irrelevant (any regions outside the relevant area) areas. The task also included distractors in relevant and irrelevant areas, comprising a brief conversation and dropping of a pencil, respectively. Proportion of total fixation duration on areas of interest (PFDAOI) was used to assess sustained attention. RESULTS Children with ADHD had lower PFDAOI in the relevant area during the whole class than children in the control group. After the relevant area distractor, PFDAOI increased in relevant area in ADHD group, indicating these children may have better attention after the distractor. However, children with ADHD also showed increased PFDAOI in the irrelevant area following the irrelevant area distractor, indicating that it negatively affected them. There was no significant change in the control group following the distractors. CONCLUSION These findings indicate that children with ADHD have poor sustained attention performance during the whole class. Moreover, distractors in distinct areas could affect children with ADHD differently. Thus, students with ADHD could benefit from increased stimuli in the relevant area and this can be a guide for classroom arrangements to improve the academic functionality of these children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Esen Yıldırım Demirdöğen
- Atatürk University Medicine Faculty, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Erzurum, Turkey
| | - İbrahim Selçuk Esin
- Health Science University, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Trabzon, Turkey
| | - Bahadır Turan
- Karadeniz Technical University, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Trabzon
| | - Onur Burak Dursun
- Health Science University, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Trabzon, Turkey
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18
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Anderson EM, Seemiller ES, Smith LB. Scene saliencies in egocentric vision and their creation by parents and infants. Cognition 2022; 229:105256. [PMID: 35988453 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2022.105256] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2022] [Revised: 08/09/2022] [Accepted: 08/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Across the lifespan, humans are biased to look first at what is easy to see, with a handful of well-documented visual saliences shaping our attention (e.g., Itti & Koch, 2001). These attentional biases may emerge from the contexts in which moment-tomoment attention occurs, where perceivers and their social partners actively shape bottom-up saliences, moving their bodies and objects to make targets of interest more salient. The goal of the present study was to determine the bottom-up saliences present in infant egocentric images and to provide evidence on the role that infants and their mature social partners play in highlighting targets of interest via these saliences. We examined 968 unique scenes in which an object had purposefully been placed in the infant's egocentric view, drawn from videos created by one-year-old infants wearing a head camera during toy-play with a parent. To understand which saliences mattered in these scenes, we conducted a visual search task, asking participants (n = 156) to find objects in the egocentric images. To connect this to the behaviors of perceivers, we then characterized the saliences of objects placed by infants or parents compared to objects that were otherwise present in the scenes. Our results show that body-centric properties, such as increases in the centering and visual size of the object, as well as decreases in the number of competing objects immediately surrounding it, both predicted faster search time and distinguished placed and unplaced objects. The present results suggest that the bottom-up saliences that can be readily controlled by perceivers and their social partners may most strongly impact our attention. This finding has implications for the functional role of saliences in human vision, their origin, the social structure of perceptual environments, and how the relation between bottom-up and top-down control of attention in these environments may support infant learning.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Linda B Smith
- Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, USA
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19
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White H, Heck A, Jubran R, Chroust A, Bhatt RS. Average fixation duration in infancy: Stability and predictive utility. INFANCY 2022; 27:866-886. [PMID: 35624554 DOI: 10.1111/infa.12483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2021] [Revised: 03/02/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The current study examined the stability, consistency, and predictive utility of average fixation durations in infancy. In Study 1, infants' (N = 80) average fixation duration when viewing social stimuli was found to show strong relative stability from 3.5 to 9 months of age. In Study 2, strong within-infant consistency was found in 3.5-month-old infants' (N = 73) average fixation durations to social and nonsocial stimuli. In Study 3, 3.5- to 9-month-old infants' (N = 89) average fixation duration was found to systematically vary with parent-reported symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) at 4-6 years of age. These results suggest that average fixation duration serves as a stable and systematic measure of individual differences in cognitive development beginning early in life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah White
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Alison Heck
- Department of Psychology, Berea College, Berea, Kentucky, USA
| | - Rachel Jubran
- Department of Behavioral & Social Sciences, University of Montevallo, Montevallo, Alabama, USA
| | - Alyson Chroust
- College of Arts and Sciences, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, Tennessee, USA
| | - Ramesh S Bhatt
- Department of Psychology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, USA
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20
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Jiang W, Merhar SL, Zeng Z, Zhu Z, Yin W, Zhou Z, Wang L, He L, Vannest J, Lin W. Neural alterations in opioid-exposed infants revealed by edge-centric brain functional networks. Brain Commun 2022; 4:fcac112. [PMID: 35602654 PMCID: PMC9117006 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcac112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2021] [Revised: 03/29/2022] [Accepted: 05/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Prenatal opioid exposure has been linked to adverse effects spanning multiple neurodevelopmental domains, including cognition, motor development, attention, and vision. However, the neural basis of these abnormalities is largely unknown. A total of 49 infants, including 21 opioid-exposed and 28 controls, were enrolled and underwent MRI (43 ± 6 days old) after birth, including resting state functional MRI. Edge-centric functional networks based on dynamic functional connections were constructed, and machine-learning methods were employed to identify neural features distinguishing opioid-exposed infants from unexposed controls. An accuracy of 73.6% (sensitivity 76.25% and specificity 69.33%) was achieved using 10 times 10-fold cross-validation, which substantially outperformed those obtained using conventional static functional connections (accuracy 56.9%). More importantly, we identified that prenatal opioid exposure preferentially affects inter- rather than intra-network dynamic functional connections, particularly with the visual, subcortical, and default mode networks. Consistent results at the brain regional and connection levels were also observed, where the brain regions and connections associated with visual and higher order cognitive functions played pivotal roles in distinguishing opioid-exposed infants from controls. Our findings support the clinical phenotype of infants exposed to opioids in utero and may potentially explain the higher rates of visual and emotional problems observed in this population. Finally, our findings suggested that edge-centric networks could better capture the neural differences between opioid-exposed infants and controls by abstracting the intrinsic co-fluctuation along edges, which may provide a promising tool for future studies focusing on investigating the effects of prenatal opioid exposure on neurodevelopment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Weixiong Jiang
- Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States
| | - Stephanie L. Merhar
- Perinatal Institute, Division of Neonatology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and University of Cincinnati Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati OH, United States
| | - Zhuohao Zeng
- East Chapel Hill High School, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States
| | - Ziliang Zhu
- Department of Biostatistics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States
| | - Weiyan Yin
- Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States
| | - Zhen Zhou
- Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States
| | - Li Wang
- Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States
| | - Lili He
- Department of Radiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati OH, United States
| | - Jennifer Vannest
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati OH, United States
| | - Weili Lin
- Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States
- Department of Radiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States
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21
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Shephard E, Zuccolo PF, Idrees I, Godoy PBG, Salomone E, Ferrante C, Sorgato P, Catão LFCC, Goodwin A, Bolton PF, Tye C, Groom MJ, Polanczyk GV. Systematic Review and Meta-analysis: The Science of Early-Life Precursors and Interventions for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2022; 61:187-226. [PMID: 33864938 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaac.2021.03.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2020] [Revised: 03/01/2021] [Accepted: 03/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To evaluate which early neurocognitive and behavioral precursors are associated with the development of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and whether these are currently targeted in early interventions. METHOD We conducted 2 systematic reviews and meta-analyses of empirical studies to examine the following: (1) early-life (0-5 years) neurocognitive and behavioral precursors associated with familial likelihood for ADHD, an early ADHD diagnosis/elevated ADHD symptoms, and/or the presence of later-childhood ADHD; and (2) interventions delivered to children aged 0 to 5 years targeting the identified precursors or measuring these as outcomes. Standardized mean differences (Hedges' g) and pre-post-treatment change scores (SMD) were computed. RESULTS A total of 149 studies (165,095 participants) investigating 8 neurocognitive and behavioral domains met inclusion criteria for part 1. Multi-level random-effects meta-analyses on 136 studies revealed significant associations between ADHD and poorer cognitive (g = -0.46 [95% CIs: -0.59, -0.33]), motor (g = -0.35 [CIs: -0.48, -0.21]) and language (g = -0.43 [CIs: -0.66, -0.19]) development, social (g = 0.23 [CIs: 0.03, 0.43]) and emotional (g = 0.46 [CIs: 0.33, 0.58]) difficulties, early regulatory (g = 0.30 [CIs: 0.18, 0.43]) and sleep (g = 0.29 [CIs: 0.14, 0.44]) problems, sensory atypicalities (g = 0.52 [CIs: 0.16, 0.88]), elevated activity levels (g = 0.54 [CIs: 0.37, 0.72]), and executive function difficulties (g = 0.34 [CIs: 0.05, 0.64] to -0.87 [CIs: -1.35, -0.40]). A total of 32 trials (28 randomized, 4 nonrandomized, 3,848 participants) testing early interventions that targeted the identified precursors met inclusion criteria for part 2. Multi-level random-effects meta-analyses on 22 studies revealed significant intervention-related improvements in ADHD symptoms (SMD = 0.43 [CIs: 0.22, 0.64]) and working memory (SMD = 0.37 [CIs: 0.06, 0.69]). CONCLUSION Children aged 0 to 5 years with current or later-emerging ADHD are likely to experience difficulties in multiple neurocognitive/behavioral functions. Early interventions show some effectiveness in reducing ADHD symptoms, but their effects on neurocognitive/behavioral difficulties require further study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth Shephard
- Drs. Shephard, Zuccolo, Prof. Polanczyk, Ms. Godoy, and Mr. Catão are with Faculdade de Medicina FMUSP, Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil; Drs. Shephard, Goodwin, Tye, and Prof. Bolton are with Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN), King's College London, United Kingdom.
| | - Pedro F Zuccolo
- Drs. Shephard, Zuccolo, Prof. Polanczyk, Ms. Godoy, and Mr. Catão are with Faculdade de Medicina FMUSP, Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Iman Idrees
- Ms. Idrees and Dr. Groom are with Institute of Mental Health, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom
| | - Priscilla B G Godoy
- Drs. Shephard, Zuccolo, Prof. Polanczyk, Ms. Godoy, and Mr. Catão are with Faculdade de Medicina FMUSP, Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Erica Salomone
- Dr. Salomone and Mss. Ferrante and Sorgato are with the University of Milan-Bicocca, Italy
| | - Camilla Ferrante
- Dr. Salomone and Mss. Ferrante and Sorgato are with the University of Milan-Bicocca, Italy
| | - Paola Sorgato
- Dr. Salomone and Mss. Ferrante and Sorgato are with the University of Milan-Bicocca, Italy
| | - Luís F C C Catão
- Drs. Shephard, Zuccolo, Prof. Polanczyk, Ms. Godoy, and Mr. Catão are with Faculdade de Medicina FMUSP, Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Amy Goodwin
- Drs. Shephard, Goodwin, Tye, and Prof. Bolton are with Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN), King's College London, United Kingdom
| | - Patrick F Bolton
- Drs. Shephard, Goodwin, Tye, and Prof. Bolton are with Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN), King's College London, United Kingdom; Prof. Bolton is also with The Maudsley NIHR Biomedical Research Centre in Mental Health, King's College London and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom
| | - Charlotte Tye
- Drs. Shephard, Goodwin, Tye, and Prof. Bolton are with Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN), King's College London, United Kingdom
| | - Madeleine J Groom
- Ms. Idrees and Dr. Groom are with Institute of Mental Health, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom
| | - Guilherme V Polanczyk
- Drs. Shephard, Zuccolo, Prof. Polanczyk, Ms. Godoy, and Mr. Catão are with Faculdade de Medicina FMUSP, Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil
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22
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Evaluation of Fixational Behavior throughout Life. Brain Sci 2021; 12:brainsci12010019. [PMID: 35053764 PMCID: PMC8774210 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12010019] [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: 11/28/2021] [Revised: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 12/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: To quantify development of gaze stability throughout life during short and long fixational tasks using eye tracking technology. Methods: Two hundred and fifty-nine participants aged between 5 months and 77 years were recruited along the study. All participants underwent a complete ophthalmological assessment. Fixational behavior during long and short fixational tasks was analyzed using a DIVE (Device for an Integral Visual Examination), a digital test assisted with eye tracking technology. The participants were divided into ten groups according to their age. Group 1, 0–2 years; group 2, 2–5 years; group 3, 5–10 years; group 4, 10–20 years; group 5, 20–30 years; group 6, 30–40 years; group 7, 40–50 years; group 8, 50–60 years; group 9, 60–70 years; and group 10, over 70 years. Results: Gaze stability, assessed by logBCEA (log-transformed bivariate contour ellipse area), improved with age from 5 months to 30 years (1.27 vs. 0.57 deg2 for long fixational task, 0.73 vs. −0.04 deg2 for short fixational task), while fixations tend to be longer (1.95 vs. 2.80 msec for long fixational tasks and 0.80 vs. 1.71 msec for short fixational tasks). All fixational outcomes worsened progressively from the fifth decade of life. Log-transformed bivariate contour ellipse area (0.79, 0.83, 0.91, 1.42 deg2 for long fixational task and 0.01, 0.18, 0.28, 0.44 deg2 for short fixational task, for group 7, 8, 9, and 10 respectively). Stimuli features may influence oculomotor performance, with smaller stimuli providing prolonged fixations. Conclusions: Fixational behavior can be accurately assessed from 5 months of age using a DIVE. We report normative data of gaze stability and duration of fixations for every age group. Currently available technology may increase the accuracy of our visual assessments at any age.
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INTERSTAARS: Attention training for infants with elevated likelihood of developing ADHD: A proof-of-concept randomised controlled trial. Transl Psychiatry 2021; 11:644. [PMID: 34930893 PMCID: PMC8688472 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-021-01698-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2020] [Revised: 07/02/2021] [Accepted: 10/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is first diagnosed during middle childhood, when patterns of difficulty are often established. Pre-emptive approaches that strengthen developing cognitive systems could offer an alternative to post-diagnostic interventions. This proof-of-concept randomised controlled trial (RCT) tested whether computerised gaze-based attention training is feasible and improves attention in infants liable to develop ADHD. Forty-three 9- to 16-month-old infants with a first-degree relative with ADHD were recruited (11/2015-11/2018) at two UK sites and randomised with minimisation by site and sex to receive 9 weekly sessions of either (a) gaze-contingent attention training (intervention; n = 20); or (b) infant-friendly passive viewing of videos (control, n = 23). Sessions were delivered at home with blinded outcome assessments. The primary outcome was a composite of attention measures jointly analysed via a multivariate ANCOVA with a combined effect size (ES) from coefficients at baseline, midpoint and endpoint (Registration: ISRCTN37683928 ). Uptake and compliance was good but intention-to-treat analysis showed no significant differences between 20 intervention and 23 control infants on primary (ES -0.4, 95% CI -0.9 to 0.2; Complier-Average-Causal Effect ES -0.6, 95% CI -1.6 to 0.5) or secondary outcomes (behavioural attention). There were no adverse effects on sleep but a small increase in post-intervention session fussiness. Although feasible, there was no support for short-term effects of gaze-based attention training on attention skills in early ADHD. Longer-term outcomes remain to be assessed. The study highlights challenges and opportunities for pre-emptive intervention approaches to the management of ADHD.
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Zhou Q, Jiang Z, Ding J. Reward Expectation Differentially Modulates Global and Local Spatial Working Memory Accuracy. Front Psychol 2021; 12:744400. [PMID: 34721223 PMCID: PMC8554088 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.744400] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2021] [Accepted: 09/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Although it has been suggested that reward expectation affects the performance of spatial working memory tasks, controversial results have been found in previous experiments. Hence, it is still unclear to what extent reward expectation has an effect on working memory. To clarify this question, a memory-guided saccade task was applied, in which participants were instructed to retain and reconstruct a temporospatial sequence of four locations by moving their eyes in each trial. The global- and local-level spatial working memory accuracies were calculated to determine the reward effect on the global and local level of processing in spatial working memory tasks. Although high reward expectation enhanced the encoding of spatial information, the percentage of trials in which the cued location was correctly fixated decreased with increment of reward expectation. The reconstruction of the global temporospatial sequence was enhanced by reward expectation, whereas the local reconstruction performance was not affected by reward. Furthermore, the improvements in local representations of uncued locations and local sequences were at the cost of the representation of cued locations. The results suggest that the reward effect on spatial working memory is modulated by the level of processing, which supports the flexible resource theory during maintenance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qingjie Zhou
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, College of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Zanzan Jiang
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, College of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Jinhong Ding
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, College of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
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Stephens RL, Elsayed HE, Reznick JS, Crais ER, Watson LR. Infant Attentional behaviors Are Associated With ADHD Symptomatology and Executive Function in Early Childhood. J Atten Disord 2021; 25:1908-1918. [PMID: 32749184 PMCID: PMC8427808 DOI: 10.1177/1087054720945019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Objective: We explored associations between infant attentional behaviors as measured by the First Year Inventory (FYIv2.0) and dimensional ratings of ADHD symptomatology and executive function (EF) in early childhood. Methods: This study included parents (N = 229) who filled out the FYIv2.0 when their children were 12 months of age. When children were approximately 54 months (4.5 years) of age, parents completed reports of children's ADHD symptomatology and EF abilities. Correlation and regression analyses were conducted among measures. Results: We found significant associations among the variables of interest, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, as well as gender differences. Notably, non-social sensory attention (NSA) was significantly related to 54-month ADHD symptom severity. All three 12-month attention variables were significantly related to 54-month EF. Conclusion: Results suggest that infant attentional behaviors predict later ADHD-related behaviors in early childhood. Future research should explore associations using laboratory-based measures and could inform early intervention efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Heba E. Elsayed
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA
- Alexandria University, Egypt
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26
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Gepner B, Charrier A, Arciszewski T, Tardif C. Slowness Therapy for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Blind Longitudinal Randomized Controlled Study. J Autism Dev Disord 2021; 52:3102-3115. [PMID: 34268638 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-021-05183-6] [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] [Accepted: 06/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The world often goes too fast for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to process. We tested the therapeutic effectiveness of input slowing in children with ASD. Over 12 months, 12 children with ASD had weekly speech therapy sessions where stimuli were slowly played on a PC, while 11 age- and level-matched children with ASD had speech therapy using real-time stimuli. At the beginning and end of the study, all participants were assessed on communication, imitation, facial emotion recognition, behavior, and face exploration. Whereas communication and facial emotion recognition improved in both groups, imitation increased, inappropriate behaviors decreased, and time spent fixating mouth and eyes increased solely in the group using slowness. Slowness therapy seems very promising for ASD children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruno Gepner
- Institut de Neurophysiopathologie (INP), CNRS UMR 7051, Aix-Marseille University, 27, Bd Jean Moulin, 13385, Marseille Cedex 05, France.
| | - Aurore Charrier
- Institut Médico-éducatif La Frégate, Aidera Var, Toulon, France
| | - Thomas Arciszewski
- Laboratoire de Psychologie de la Connaissance, du Langage et de l'Emotion (PSYCLE), Aix-Marseille University, Aix-en-Provence, France
| | - Carole Tardif
- Laboratoire de Psychologie de la Connaissance, du Langage et de l'Emotion (PSYCLE), Aix-Marseille University, Aix-en-Provence, France
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Behavioural Measures of Infant Activity but Not Attention Associate with Later Preschool ADHD Traits. Brain Sci 2021; 11:brainsci11050524. [PMID: 33919004 PMCID: PMC8143002 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci11050524] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2020] [Revised: 03/15/2021] [Accepted: 03/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Mapping infant neurocognitive differences that precede later ADHD-related behaviours is critical for designing early interventions. In this study, we investigated (1) group differences in a battery of measures assessing aspects of attention and activity level in infants with and without a family history of ADHD or related conditions (ASD), and (2) longitudinal associations between the infant measures and preschool ADHD traits at 3 years. Participants (N = 151) were infants with or without an elevated likelihood for ADHD (due to a family history of ADHD and/or ASD). A multi-method assessment protocol was used to assess infant attention and activity level at 10 months of age that included behavioural, cognitive, physiological and neural measures. Preschool ADHD traits were measured at 3 years of age using the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) and the Child Behaviour Questionnaire (CBQ). Across a broad range of measures, we found no significant group differences in attention or activity level at 10 months between infants with and without a family history of ADHD or ASD. However, parent and observer ratings of infant activity level at 10 months were positively associated with later preschool ADHD traits at 3 years. Observable behavioural differences in activity level (but not attention) may be apparent from infancy in children who later develop elevated preschool ADHD traits.
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28
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Siqueiros Sanchez M, Ronald A, Mason L, Jones EJH, Bölte S, Falck-Ytter T. Visual disengagement in young infants in relation to age, sex, SES, developmental level and adaptive functioning. Infant Behav Dev 2021; 63:101555. [PMID: 33799012 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2021.101555] [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: 05/20/2020] [Revised: 02/25/2021] [Accepted: 03/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Visual attention plays a key role in infants' interaction with the environment, and shapes their behavioral and brain development. As such, early problems with flexibly switching gaze from one stimulus to another (visual disengagement) have been hypothesized to lead to developmental difficulties (e.g. joint attention and social skills) over time. This study aimed to identify cross-sectional associations between performance in the Gap task (gaze shift latencies and visual attention disengagement) and measures of development and adaptive behavior in conjunction to any sex or socioeconomic status effects in infancy. We measured visual attention disengagement in 436 5-month-old infants and calculated its association with cognitive developmental level, adaptive behaviours, socioeconomic status (SES) and biological sex. In the Gap task, participants must redirect their gaze from a central stimulus to an appearing peripheral stimulus. The three experimental conditions of the task (Gap, Baseline and Overlap) differ on the timepoint when the central stimuli disappears in relation to the appearance of the peripheral stimulus: 200 ms before the peripheral stimulus appears (Gap), simultaneously to its appearance (Baseline), or with peripheral stimulus offset (Overlap). The data from the experimental conditions showed the expected pattern, with average latencies being the shortest in the Gap and longest in the Overlap condition. Females were faster (p = .004) than males in the Gap condition, which could indicate that arousal-related effects differ as a function of biological sex. Infants from higher SES were slower (p = .031) in the Overlap condition compared to lower SES infants. This suggests that basic visual attention may differ by socio-cultural background, and should be considered when studying visual attention and its developmental correlates. We observed no significant association to concurrent developmental level or adaptive function. Given its large sample size, this study provides a useful reference for future studies of visual disengagement in early infancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monica Siqueiros Sanchez
- Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (KIND), Division of Neuropsychiatry, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden; Center of Psychiatry Research, Stockholm County Council, Stockholm, Sweden; Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Department of Psychological Science, Birkbeck, University of London, London, United Kingdom.
| | - Angelica Ronald
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Department of Psychological Science, Birkbeck, University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Luke Mason
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Department of Psychological Science, Birkbeck, University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Emily J H Jones
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Department of Psychological Science, Birkbeck, University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Sven Bölte
- Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (KIND), Division of Neuropsychiatry, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden; Center of Psychiatry Research, Stockholm County Council, Stockholm, Sweden; Curtin Autism Research Group, School of Occupational Therapy, Social Work and Speech Pathology, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia; Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Stockholm County Council, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Terje Falck-Ytter
- Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (KIND), Division of Neuropsychiatry, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden; Center of Psychiatry Research, Stockholm County Council, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Psychology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden; Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study (SCAS), Uppsala, Sweden
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29
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Falk S, Fasolo M, Genovese G, Romero‐Lauro L, Franco F. Sing for me, Mama! Infants' discrimination of novel vowels in song. INFANCY 2021; 26:248-270. [DOI: 10.1111/infa.12387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2020] [Revised: 12/08/2020] [Accepted: 12/14/2020] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Simone Falk
- Department of Linguistics and Translation University of Montreal, Montreal Quebec Canada
- Laboratory for Brain, Music and Sound Research (BRAMS) University of Montreal, Montreal Quebec Canada
| | - Mirco Fasolo
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging, and Clinical Sciences University "G. d'Annunzio" of Chieti‐Pescara Chieti Italy
| | | | - Leonor Romero‐Lauro
- Department of Psychology University of Milan‐Bicocca Milano Italy
- Neuromi Milan Center for Neuroscience Milano Italy
| | - Fabia Franco
- Department of Psychology Faculty of Science and Technology Middlesex University London London UK
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30
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Falck-Ytter T, Pettersson E, Bölte S, D'Onofrio B, Lichtenstein P, Kennedy DP. Difficulties maintaining prolonged fixation and attention-deficit/hyperactivity symptoms share genetic influences in childhood. Psychiatry Res 2020; 293:113384. [PMID: 32823201 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2020] [Revised: 07/28/2020] [Accepted: 08/12/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
This study investigated the association between the ability to maintain prolonged (2-minute) fixation on a visual target and ADHD traits in a sample consisting of 120 monozygotic and 120 dizygotic twin pairs, aged 9 to 14 years. More intrusive saccades during the task was associated with higher level of parent-reported ADHD traits. Both intrusive saccades and ADHD symptoms had high heritability estimates, and there was a moderate genetic correlation between number of intrusive saccades and ADHD. This study suggests that inability to maintain ocular fixation for longer times is etiologically linked to ADHD traits in the general population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Terje Falck-Ytter
- Department of Psychology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden; Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders at Karolinska Institutet (KIND), Dept of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study (SCAS), Uppsala, Sweden.
| | - Erik Pettersson
- Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Sven Bölte
- Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders at Karolinska Institutet (KIND), Dept of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Child Psychiatry Stockholm, Center for Psychiatry Research, Stockholm County Council, Sweden; Curtin Autism Research Group, School of Occupational Therapy, Social Work and Speech Pathology, Curtin University, Perth, WA, Australia
| | - Brian D'Onofrio
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, USA
| | - Paul Lichtenstein
- Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Daniel P Kennedy
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, USA
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31
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Stallworthy IC, Sifre R, Berry D, Lasch C, Smith TJ, Elison JT. Infants' gaze exhibits a fractal structure that varies by age and stimulus salience. Sci Rep 2020; 10:17216. [PMID: 33057030 PMCID: PMC7560596 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-73187-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2019] [Accepted: 09/11/2020] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The development of selective visual attention is critical for effectively engaging with an ever-changing world. Its optimal deployment depends upon interactions between neural, motor, and sensory systems across multiple timescales and neurocognitive loci. Previous work illustrates the spatio-temporal dynamics of these processes in adults, but less is known about this emergent phenomenon early in life. Using data (n = 190; 421 visits) collected between 3 and 35 months of age, we examined the spatio-temporal complexity of young children's gaze patterns as they viewed stimuli varying in semantic salience. Specifically, we used detrended fluctuation analysis (DFA) to quantify the extent to which infants' gaze patterns exhibited scale invariant patterns of nested variability, an organizational feature thought to reflect self-organized and optimally flexible system dynamics that are not overly rigid or random. Results indicated that gaze patterns of even the youngest infants exhibited fractal organization that increased with age. Further, fractal organization was greater when children (a) viewed social stimuli compared to stimuli with degraded social information and (b) when they spontaneously gazed at faces. These findings suggest that selective attention is well-organized in infancy, particularly toward social information, and indicate noteworthy growth in these processes across the first years of life.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Robin Sifre
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA
| | - Daniel Berry
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA
| | - Carolyn Lasch
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA
| | - Tim J Smith
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck University of London, London, UK
| | - Jed T Elison
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA
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32
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Pyykkö J, Ashorn U, Chilora E, Maleta K, Ashorn P, Leppänen JM. Associations between individual variations in visual attention at 9 months and behavioral competencies at 18 months in rural Malawi. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0239613. [PMID: 33002053 PMCID: PMC7529224 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0239613] [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: 03/25/2020] [Accepted: 09/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Theoretical and empirical considerations suggest that individual differences in infant visual attention correlate with variations in cognitive skills later in childhood. Here we tested this hypothesis in infants from rural Malawi (n = 198-377, depending on analysis), who were assessed with eye tracking tests of visual orienting, anticipatory looks, and attention to faces at 9 months, and more conventional tests of cognitive control (A-not-B), motor, language, and socioemotional development at 18 months. The results showed no associations between measures of infant attention at 9 months and cognitive skills at 18 months, either in analyses linking infant visual orienting with broad cognitive outcomes or analyses linking specific constructs between the two time points (i.e., switching of anticipatory looks and manual reaching responses), as correlations varied between -0.08 and 0.14. Measures of physical growth, and family socioeconomic characteristics were also not correlated with cognitive outcomes at 18 months in the current sample (correlations between -0.10 and 0.19). The results do not support the use of the current tests of infant visual attention as a predictive tool for 18-month-old infants' cognitive skills in the Malawian setting. The results are discussed in light of the potential limitations of the employed infant tests as well as potentially unique characteristics of early cognitive development in low-resource settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juha Pyykkö
- Center for Child Health Research, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
- * E-mail:
| | - Ulla Ashorn
- Center for Child Health Research, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Eletina Chilora
- Department of Public Health, School of Public Health and Family Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Malawi, Blantyre, Malawi
| | - Kenneth Maleta
- Department of Public Health, School of Public Health and Family Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Malawi, Blantyre, Malawi
| | - Per Ashorn
- Center for Child Health Research, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
- Department of Paediatrics, Tampere University Hospital, Tampere, Finland
| | - Jukka M. Leppänen
- Infant Cognition Laboratory, Center for Child Health Research, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
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Marin A, Hutman T, Ponting C, McDonald NM, Carver L, Baker E, Daniel M, Dickinson A, Dapretto M, Johnson SP, Jeste SS. Electrophysiological signatures of visual statistical learning in 3-month-old infants at familial and low risk for autism spectrum disorder. Dev Psychobiol 2020; 62:858-870. [PMID: 32215919 PMCID: PMC7483854 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2019] [Revised: 02/03/2020] [Accepted: 02/26/2020] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Visual statistical learning (VSL) refers to the ability to extract associations and conditional probabilities within the visual environment. It may serve as a precursor to cognitive and social communication development. Quantifying VSL in infants at familial risk (FR) for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) provides opportunities to understand how genetic predisposition can influence early learning processes which may, in turn, lay a foundation for cognitive and social communication delays. We examined electroencephalography (EEG) signatures of VSL in 3-month-old infants, examining whether EEG correlates of VSL differentiated FR from low-risk (LR) infants. In an exploratory analysis, we then examined whether EEG correlates of VSL at 3 months relate to cognitive function and ASD symptoms at 18 months. Infants were exposed to a continuous stream of looming shape pairs with varying probability that the shapes would occur in sequence (high probability-deterministic condition; low probability-probabilistic condition). EEG was time-locked to shapes based on their transitional probabilities. EEG analysis examined group-level characteristics underlying specific components, including the late frontal positivity (LFP) and N700 responses. FR infants demonstrated increased LFP and N700 response to the probabilistic condition, whereas LR infants demonstrated increased LFP and N700 response to the deterministic condition. LFP at 3 months predicted 18-month visual reception skills and not ASD symptoms. Our findings thus provide evidence for distinct VSL processes in FR and LR infants as early as 3 months. Atypical pattern learning in FR infants may lay a foundation for later delays in higher level, nonverbal cognitive skills, and predict ASD symptoms well before an ASD diagnosis is made.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Marin
- University of California, Los Angeles - Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Ted Hutman
- University of California, Los Angeles - Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Carolyn Ponting
- University of California, Los Angeles - Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Nicole M McDonald
- University of California, Los Angeles - Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Leslie Carver
- University of California, San Diego - Psychology Department, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Elizabeth Baker
- University of California, Los Angeles - Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Manjari Daniel
- University of California, Los Angeles - Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Abigail Dickinson
- University of California, Los Angeles - Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Mirella Dapretto
- University of California, Los Angeles - Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Scott P Johnson
- Psychology Department, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Shafali S Jeste
- University of California, Los Angeles - Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Abstract
While adult brains are known to be functionally flexible, the emergence of a functionally flexible brain during early infancy is largely uncharted due the lack of approaches to assess neural flexibility in infants. Using recent advances of multilayer network approaches and a cohort of typically developing children who underwent longitudinal MRI during the first 2 y of life, we investigated the developmental characteristics of brain neural flexibility. The temporal and spatial emergence of a functionally flexible brain was revealed. Brain regions with high neural flexibility appear consistent with the core regions supporting cognitive flexibility processing in adults, whereas brain regions governing basic brain functions exhibit lower neural flexibility, demonstrating the emergence of functionally flexible brain during early infancy. Adult brains are functionally flexible, a unique characteristic that is thought to contribute to cognitive flexibility. While tools to assess cognitive flexibility during early infancy are lacking, we aimed to assess the spatiotemporal developmental features of “neural flexibility” during the first 2 y of life. Fifty-two typically developing children 0 to 2 y old were longitudinally imaged up to seven times during natural sleep using resting-state functional MRI. Using a sliding window approach, MR-derived neural flexibility, a quantitative measure of the frequency at which brain regions change their allegiance from one functional module to another during a given time period, was used to evaluate the temporal emergence of neural flexibility during early infancy. Results showed that neural flexibility of whole brain, motor, and high-order brain functional networks/regions increased significantly with age, while visual regions exhibited a temporally stable pattern, suggesting spatially and temporally nonuniform developmental features of neural flexibility. Additionally, the neural flexibility of the primary visual network at 3 mo of age was significantly and negatively associated with cognitive ability evaluated at 5/6 y of age. The “flexible club,” comprising brain regions with neural flexibility significantly higher than whole-brain neural flexibility, were consistent with brain regions known to govern cognitive flexibility in adults and exhibited unique characteristics when compared to the functional hub and diverse club regions. Thus, MR-derived neural flexibility has the potential to reveal the underlying neural substrates for developing a cognitively flexible brain during early infancy.
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35
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Rennels JL, Kayl AJ, Kulhanek KM. Individual Differences in Infants' Temperament Affect Face Processing. Brain Sci 2020; 10:E474. [PMID: 32718073 PMCID: PMC7464873 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci10080474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2020] [Revised: 07/17/2020] [Accepted: 07/21/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Infants show an advantage in processing female and familiar race faces, but the effect sizes are often small, suggesting individual differences in their discrimination abilities. This research assessed whether differences in 6-10-month-olds' temperament (surgency and orienting) predicted how they scanned individual faces varying in race and gender during familiarization and whether and how long it took them to locate the face during a visual search task. This study also examined whether infants viewing faces posing pleasant relative to neutral expressions would facilitate their discrimination of male and unfamiliar race faces. Results showed that infants' surgency on its own or in conjunction with their orienting regularly interacted with facial characteristics to predict their scanning and location of faces. Furthermore, infants' scanning patterns (dwell times and internal-external fixation shifts) correlated with their ability and time to locate a familiarized face. Moreover, infants who viewed faces with pleasant expressions showed better discrimination of unfamiliar race and male faces compared with infants who viewed neutral faces. Including temperament in the analyses consistently demonstrated its significance for understanding infant face processing. Findings suggest that positive interactions with other-race individuals and men might reduce processing disadvantages for those face types. Locating familiar adults in a timely manner is a crucial skill for infants to develop and these data elucidate factors influencing this ability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L. Rennels
- Department of Psychology, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV 89154, USA; (A.J.K.); (K.M.K.)
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Braithwaite EK, Gui A, Jones EJH. Social attention: What is it, how can we measure it, and what can it tell us about autism and ADHD? PROGRESS IN BRAIN RESEARCH 2020; 254:271-303. [PMID: 32859292 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pbr.2020.05.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Neurodevelopmental disorders like autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) affect 2-10% of children worldwide but are still poorly understood. Prospective studies of infants with an elevated familial likelihood of ASD or ADHD can provide insight into early mechanisms that canalize development down a typical or atypical course. Such work holds potential for earlier identification and intervention to support optimal outcomes in individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders. Disrupted attention may be involved in developmental trajectories to ASD and ADHD. Specifically, altered attention to social stimuli has been suggested as a possible endophenotype of ASD, lying between genetic factors impacting brain development and later symptoms. Similarly, changes in domain-general aspects of attention are commonly seen in ADHD and emerging evidence suggests these may begin in infancy. Could these patterns point to a common risk factor for both disorders? Or does social attention reflect the activity of a particular network of brain systems that is distinct to those underpinning general attention skills? One challenge to addressing such questions is our lack of understanding of the relation between social and general attention. In this chapter we review evidence from infants with later ASD and ADHD that illuminates this question.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eleanor K Braithwaite
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Anna Gui
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Emily J H Jones
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, United Kingdom.
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Reducing facial dynamics' speed during speech enhances attention to mouth in children with autism spectrum disorder: An eye-tracking study. Dev Psychopathol 2020; 33:1006-1015. [PMID: 32378498 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579420000292] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Facial movements of others during verbal and social interaction are often too rapid to be faced and/or processed in time by numerous children and adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which could contribute to their face-to-face interaction peculiarities. We wish here to measure the effect of reducing the speed of one's facial dynamics on the visual exploration of the face by children with ASD. Twenty-three children with ASD and 29 typically-developing control children matched for chronological age passively viewed a video of a speaker telling a story at various velocities, i.e., a real-time speed and two slowed-down speeds. The visual scene was divided into four areas of interest (AOI): face, mouth, eyes, and outside the face. With an eye-tracking system, we measured the percentage of total fixation duration per AOI and the number and mean duration of the visual fixations made on each AOI. In children with ASD, the mean duration of visual fixations on the mouth region, which correlated with their verbal level, increased at slowed-down velocity compared with the real-time one, a finding which parallels a result also found in the control children. These findings strengthen the therapeutic potential of slowness for enhancing verbal and language abilities in children with ASD.
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38
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Children with Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Show an Altered Eye Movement Pattern during Reading. Optom Vis Sci 2020; 97:265-274. [DOI: 10.1097/opx.0000000000001498] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
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Hendry A, Johnson MH, Holmboe K. Early Development of Visual Attention: Change, Stability, and Longitudinal Associations. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2019. [DOI: 10.1146/annurev-devpsych-121318-085114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Visual attention is a basic mechanism of information gathering and environment selection and consequently plays a fundamental role in influencing developmental trajectories. Here, we highlight evidence for predictive associations from early visual attention to emotion regulation, executive function, language and broader cognitive ability, mathematics and literacy skills, and neurodevelopmental conditions. Development of visual attention is also multifaceted and nonlinear. In daily life, core functions such as orienting, selective filtering, and processing of visual inputs are intertwined and influenced by many other cognitive components. Furthermore, the demands of an attention task vary according to the experience, motivation, and cognitive and physical constraints of participants, while the mechanisms underlying performance may change with development. Thus, markers of attention may need to be interpreted differently across development and between populations. We summarize research that has combined multiple measurements and techniques to further our understanding of visual attention development and highlight possibilities for the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Hendry
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG, United Kingdom;,
| | - Mark H. Johnson
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, United Kingdom
| | - Karla Holmboe
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG, United Kingdom;,
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40
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Helping, fast and slow: Exploring intuitive cooperation in early ontogeny. Cognition 2019; 196:104144. [PMID: 31765923 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2019.104144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2019] [Revised: 11/08/2019] [Accepted: 11/15/2019] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Cooperative behavior is central to human societies. Human adults who reach their cooperative decisions more rapidly and independently of cognitive control display greater levels of prosocial behavior. This is taken to show that cooperation is guided by intuitive processes rather than by active control of selfish impulses. The current study investigated the emergence of intuitive cooperation in early human ontogeny. We measured helping behavior (latency and frequency) in a longitudinal sample of infants at ages 14 and 18 months. Between 14 and 18 months, the frequency of helping significantly increased and latency to help significantly decreased, suggesting advances in helping behavior during this period of development. Moreover, at 18 months and to some extent, even at 14 months, infants who helped more rapidly (as indexed by a shorter latency) acted more prosocially (as indexed by a greater frequency of helping) than infants who were slower to help. This link between latency and frequency of prosocial behavior was independent of infants' ability for inhibitory control and general sociability levels. Prosocial behavior thus begins to be governed by intuitive processes that operate independently of cognitive control early in human ontogeny. This informs our understanding of the nature and emergence of cooperative behavior by supporting accounts that assign a central role to intuition in the evolution of human cooperation.
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41
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Blankenship TL, Slough MA, Calkins SD, Deater-Deckard K, Kim-Spoon J, Bell MA. Attention and executive functioning in infancy: Links to childhood executive function and reading achievement. Dev Sci 2019; 22:e12824. [PMID: 30828908 PMCID: PMC6722030 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12824] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2018] [Revised: 02/26/2019] [Accepted: 02/27/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
This study provides the first analyses connecting individual differences in infant attention to reading achievement through the development of executive functioning (EF) in infancy and early childhood. Five-month-old infants observed a video, and peak look duration and shift rate were video coded and assessed. At 10 months, as well as 3, 4, and 6 years, children completed age-appropriate EF tasks (A-not-B task, hand game, forward digit span, backwards digit span, and number Stroop). Children also completed a standardized reading assessment and a measure of verbal intelligence (IQ) at age 6. Path analyses on 157 participants showed that infant attention had a direct statistical predictive effect on EF at 10 months, with EF showing a continuous pattern of development from 10 months to 6 years. EF and verbal IQ at 6 years had a direct effect on reading achievement. Furthermore, EF at all time points mediated the relation between 5-month attention and reading achievement. These findings may inform reading interventions by suggesting earlier intervention time points and specific cognitive processes (i.e. 5-month attention).
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Affiliation(s)
- Tashauna L Blankenship
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts
| | | | - Susan D Calkins
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina
| | - Kirby Deater-Deckard
- Department of Psychological and Brain Science, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Amherst, Massachusetts
| | | | - Martha Ann Bell
- Department of Psychology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia
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Pyykkö J, Ashorn P, Ashorn U, Niehaus DJH, Leppänen JM. Cross-cultural analysis of attention disengagement times supports the dissociation of faces and patterns in the infant brain. Sci Rep 2019; 9:14414. [PMID: 31595014 PMCID: PMC6783433 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-51034-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2019] [Accepted: 09/24/2019] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Infants are slower to disengage from faces than non-face patterns when distracted by novel competing stimuli. While this perceptual predilection for faces is well documented, its universality and mechanisms in relation to other aspects of attention are poorly understood. We analysed attention disengagement times for faces and non-face patterns in a large sample of 6-to 9-month-old infants (N = 637), pooled from eye tracking studies in socioculturally diverse settings (Finland, Malawi, South Africa). Disengagement times were classified into distinct groups of quick and delayed/censored responses by unsupervised clustering. Delayed disengagement was frequent for faces (52.1% of trials), but almost negligible for patterns (3.9% of trials) in all populations. The magnitude of this attentional bias varied by individuals, whereas the impact of situational factors and facial expression was small. Individual variations in disengagement from faces were moderately stable within testing sessions and independent from variations in disengagement times for patterns. These results point to a fundamental dissociation of face and pattern processing in infants and demonstrate that the bias for faces can be robust against distractors and habituation. The results raise the possibility that attention to faces varies as an independent, early-emerging social trait in populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juha Pyykkö
- Center for Child Health Research, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland.
| | - Per Ashorn
- Center for Child Health Research, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
- Department of Paediatrics, Tampere University Hospital, Tampere, Finland
| | - Ulla Ashorn
- Center for Child Health Research, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Dana J H Niehaus
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Jukka M Leppänen
- Infant Cognition Laboratory, Center for Child Health Research, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
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43
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Twilhaar ES, Belopolsky AV, de Kieviet JF, van Elburg RM, Oosterlaan J. Voluntary and Involuntary Control of Attention in Adolescents Born Very Preterm: A Study of Eye Movements. Child Dev 2019; 91:1272-1283. [PMID: 31535373 PMCID: PMC7497183 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.13310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Very preterm birth is associated with attention deficits that interfere with academic performance. A better understanding of attention processes is necessary to support very preterm born children. This study examined voluntary and involuntary attentional control in very preterm born adolescents by measuring saccadic eye movements. Additionally, these control processes were related to symptoms of inattention, intelligence, and academic performance. Participants included 47 very preterm and 61 full-term born 13-years-old adolescents. Oculomotor control was assessed using the antisaccade and oculomotor capture paradigm. Very preterm born adolescents showed deficits in antisaccade but not in oculomotor capture performance, indicating impairments in voluntary but not involuntary attentional control. These impairments mediated the relation between very preterm birth and inattention, intelligence, and academic performance.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Jaap Oosterlaan
- Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.,Emma Children's Hospital Amsterdam UMC
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44
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Brandes-Aitken A, Braren S, Swingler M, Voegtline K, Blair C. Sustained attention in infancy: A foundation for the development of multiple aspects of self-regulation for children in poverty. J Exp Child Psychol 2019; 184:192-209. [PMID: 31039447 PMCID: PMC6528818 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2019.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2018] [Revised: 04/09/2019] [Accepted: 04/09/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
There are many avenues by which early life poverty relates to the development of school readiness. Few studies, however, have examined the extent to which sustained attention, a central component of self-regulation in infancy, mediates relations between poverty-related risk and cognitive and emotional self-regulation at school entry. To investigate longitudinal relations among poverty-related risk, sustained attention in infancy, and self-regulation prior to school entry, we analyzed data from the Family Life Project, a large prospective longitudinal sample (N = 1292) of children and their primary caregivers in predominantly low-income and nonurban communities. We used structural equation modeling to assess the extent to which a latent variable of infant sustained attention, measured in a naturalistic setting, mediated the associations between cumulative poverty-related risk and three domains of self-regulation. We constructed a latent variable of infant sustained attention composed of a measure of global sustained attention and a task-based sustained attention measure at 7 and 15 months of age. Results indicated that infant sustained attention was negatively associated with poverty-related risk and positively associated with a direct assessment of executive function abilities and teacher-reported effortful control and emotion regulation in pre-kindergarten. Mediation analysis indicated that the association between poverty-related risk and each self-regulation outcome was partially mediated by infant attention. These results provide support for a developmental model of self-regulation whereby attentional abilities in infancy act as a mechanism linking the effects of early-life socioeconomic adversity with multiple aspects of self-regulation in early childhood.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Stephen Braren
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10012, USA
| | - Margaret Swingler
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10012, USA
| | - Kristin Voegtline
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10012, USA
| | - Clancy Blair
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10012, USA
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45
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Renswoude DR, Visser I, Raijmakers MEJ, Tsang T, Johnson SP. Real‐world scene perception in infants: What factors guide attention allocation? INFANCY 2019; 24:693-717. [DOI: 10.1111/infa.12308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2018] [Revised: 04/10/2019] [Accepted: 06/03/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Daan R. Renswoude
- Department of Psychology University of Amsterdam Amsterdam The Netherlands
- Research Priority Area YIELD Amsterdam The Netherlands
| | - Ingmar Visser
- Department of Psychology University of Amsterdam Amsterdam The Netherlands
- Research Priority Area YIELD Amsterdam The Netherlands
- Amsterdam Brian and Cognition Center Amsterdam The Netherlands
| | - Maartje E. J. Raijmakers
- Department of Psychology University of Amsterdam Amsterdam The Netherlands
- Research Priority Area YIELD Amsterdam The Netherlands
- Amsterdam Brian and Cognition Center Amsterdam The Netherlands
- Educational Studies & Learn! Free University Amsterdam The Netherlands
| | - Tawny Tsang
- Department of Psychology University of California Los Angeles California
| | - Scott P. Johnson
- Department of Psychology University of California Los Angeles California
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Berndt M, Bäuml JG, Menegaux A, Meng C, Daamen M, Baumann N, Zimmer C, Boecker H, Bartmann P, Wolke D, Sorg C. Impaired structural connectivity between dorsal attention network and pulvinar mediates the impact of premature birth on adult visual-spatial abilities. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 40:4058-4071. [PMID: 31179600 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24685] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2019] [Revised: 05/24/2019] [Accepted: 05/24/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The dorsal attention network (DAN), including frontal eye fields and posterior parietal cortices, and its link with the posterior thalamus, contribute to visual-spatial abilities. Very premature birth impairs both visual-spatial abilities and cortico-thalamic structural connectivity. We hypothesized that impaired structural DAN-pulvinar connectivity mediates the effect of very premature birth on adult visual-spatial abilities. Seventy very premature (median age 26.6 years) and 57 mature born adults (median age 26.6 years) were assessed with cognitive tests and diffusion tensor imaging. Perceptual organization (PO) index of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-III was used as a proxy for visual-spatial abilities, and connection probability maps in the thalamus, derived from probabilistic tractography from the DAN, were used as a proxy for DAN-thalamic connectivity. Premature born adults showed decreases in both PO-index and connection probability from DAN into the pulvinar, with both changes being positively correlated. Moreover, path analysis revealed that DAN-pulvinar connectivity mediates the relationship between very premature birth and PO-index. Results provide evidence for long-term effects of very premature birth on structural DAN-pulvinar connectivity, mediating the effect of prematurity on adult visual-spatial impairments. Data suggest DAN-pulvinar connectivity as a specific target of prognostic and diagnostic procedures for visual-spatial abilities after premature birth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Berndt
- Department of Neuroradiology, Technische Universität München, School of Medicine, Munich, Germany.,TUM-NIC Neuroimaging Center, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technische Universität München, School of Medicine, Munich, Germany
| | - Josef G Bäuml
- Department of Neuroradiology, Technische Universität München, School of Medicine, Munich, Germany.,TUM-NIC Neuroimaging Center, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technische Universität München, School of Medicine, Munich, Germany
| | - Aurore Menegaux
- Department of Neuroradiology, Technische Universität München, School of Medicine, Munich, Germany.,TUM-NIC Neuroimaging Center, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technische Universität München, School of Medicine, Munich, Germany.,Department of Psychology, General and Experimental Psychology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany.,Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences GSN, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Chun Meng
- TUM-NIC Neuroimaging Center, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technische Universität München, School of Medicine, Munich, Germany.,Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Marcel Daamen
- Functional Neuroimaging Group, Department of Radiology, University Hospital Bonn, Bonn, Germany.,Department of Neonatology, University Hospital Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Nicole Baumann
- Department of Psychology, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Claus Zimmer
- Department of Neuroradiology, Technische Universität München, School of Medicine, Munich, Germany
| | - Henning Boecker
- Functional Neuroimaging Group, Department of Radiology, University Hospital Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Peter Bartmann
- Department of Neonatology, University Hospital Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Dieter Wolke
- Department of Psychology, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.,Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Christian Sorg
- Department of Neuroradiology, Technische Universität München, School of Medicine, Munich, Germany.,TUM-NIC Neuroimaging Center, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technische Universität München, School of Medicine, Munich, Germany.,Department of Psychiatry, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technische Universität München
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White H, Jubran R, Heck A, Chroust A, Bhatt RS. Sex-specific scanning in infancy: Developmental changes in the use of face/head and body information. J Exp Child Psychol 2019; 182:126-143. [PMID: 30825728 PMCID: PMC6414250 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2019.01.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2018] [Revised: 12/07/2018] [Accepted: 01/07/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The current investigation sought to differentiate between contrasting perspectives of body knowledge development by determining whether infants' adult-like scanning of male and female bodies is dependent on relevant information from the face/head alone, the body alone, or a combination of both sources. Scanning patterns of 3.5-, 6.5-, and 9-month-olds (N = 80) in response to images that contained information relevant to sex classification in either the face/head or the body were examined. The results indicate that sex-specific scanning in the presence of only one source of relevant information (i.e., face/head or body) is present only at 9 months. Thus, although sex-specific scanning of bodies emerges as early as 3.5 months, information from both faces/heads and bodies is required until sometime between 6.5 and 9 months of age. These findings constrain theories of the development of social perception by documenting the complex interplay between body and face/head processing early in life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah White
- University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506, USA
| | | | - Alison Heck
- University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506, USA
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48
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Changing institutional incentives to foster sound scientific practices: One department. Infant Behav Dev 2019; 55:69-76. [PMID: 30933839 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2019.03.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2018] [Revised: 12/11/2018] [Accepted: 03/22/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Replicable research and open science are of value to our field and to society at large, but most universities provide no incentives to adopt these practices. Instead, current incentive structures favor novel research, which has led to a situation in which few researchers take the time to do replications, share protocols, or share data. Obviously, several approaches to remedy this situation are possible. However, little progress can be made if becoming involved in such activities reduces a researcher's chances of rank and status advancement and other rewards. I describe in this article the way my department has modified our incentive structure to tackle this problem, including how the changes influence my research as a developmental psychologist. Finally, I offer suggestions for faculty who wish to initiate similar changes in their institutions.
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Nakagawa A, Sukigara M. Early development of attentional disengagement and phasic alertness. Infant Behav Dev 2019; 55:38-45. [PMID: 30856558 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2019.02.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2018] [Revised: 02/22/2019] [Accepted: 02/22/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Attention development is a critical foundation for cognitive abilities. This study examines the relationship between phasic aspects of alertness and disengagement in infants, using the overlap paradigm. Research shows that visual disengagement in overlap condition is modulated by auditory cues in 6-year-olds. Our participants were aged 6 months (N = 20), 12 months (N = 27), and 24 months (N = 14). Phasic alertness during overlap and no-overlap tasks was manipulated using a spatially nondirective warning signal shortly before onset of the peripheral target. Responses in overlap condition were slower and fewer than in no-overlap condition. The signal showed a tendency to reduce latencies in both overlap and no-overlap conditions. While our hypothesis that the warning signal might be more effective in younger infants was not supported, we confirmed the association reported in previous studies between temperamental soothability and disengagement latencies in infancy.
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50
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Ryan AM, Freeman SM, Murai T, Lau AR, Palumbo MC, Hogrefe CE, Bales KL, Bauman MD. Non-invasive Eye Tracking Methods for New World and Old World Monkeys. Front Behav Neurosci 2019; 13:39. [PMID: 30890923 PMCID: PMC6412371 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2019.00039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2018] [Accepted: 02/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Eye-tracking methods measure what humans and other animals visually attend to in the environment. In nonhuman primates, eye tracking can be used to test hypotheses about how primates process social information. This information can further our understanding of primate behavior as well as offer unique translational potential to explore causes of or treatments for altered social processing as seen in people with neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia. However, previous methods for collecting eye-tracking data in nonhuman primates required some form of head restraint, which limits the opportunities for research with respect to the number of or kinds of primates that can undergo an eye-tracking study. We developed a novel, noninvasive method for collecting eye tracking data that can be used both in animals that are difficult to restrain without sedation as well as animals that are of different ages and sizes as the box size can be adjusted. Using a transport box modified with a viewing window, we collected eye-tracking data in both New (Callicebus cupreus) and Old World monkeys (Macaca mulatta) across multiple developmental time points. These monkeys had the option to move around the box and avert their eyes from the screen, yet, they demonstrated a natural interest in viewing species-specific imagery with no previous habituation to the eye-tracking paradigm. Provided with opportunistic data from voluntary viewing of stimuli, we found that juveniles viewed stimuli more than other age groups, videos were viewed more than static photo imagery, and that monkeys increased their viewing time when presented with multiple eye tracking sessions. This noninvasive approach opens new opportunities to integrate eye-tracking studies into nonhuman primate research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy M. Ryan
- The UC Davis MIND Institute, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA, United States
- California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Sara M. Freeman
- California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Takeshi Murai
- Platform Technology Research Unit, Drug Research Division, Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma Co., Ltd., Osaka, Japan
| | - Allison R. Lau
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA, United States
- California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Michelle C. Palumbo
- California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Casey E. Hogrefe
- California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Karen L. Bales
- California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Melissa D. Bauman
- The UC Davis MIND Institute, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA, United States
- California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
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