Abstract
Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have difficulties with social communication and interaction. The social motivation hypothesis states that a reduced interest in social stimuli may partly underlie these difficulties. Thus far, however, it has been challenging to quantify individual differences in social orientation and interest, and to pinpoint the neural underpinnings of it. In this study, we tested the neural sensitivity for social versus non-social information in 21 boys with ASD (8-12 years old) and 21 typically developing (TD) control boys, matched for age and IQ, while children were engaged in an orthogonal task. We recorded electroencephalography (EEG) during fast periodic visual stimulation (FPVS) of social versus non-social stimuli to obtain an objective implicit neural measure of relative social bias. Streams of variable images of faces and houses were superimposed, and each stream of stimuli was tagged with a particular presentation rate (i.e., 6 and 7.5 Hz or vice versa). This frequency-tagging method allows disentangling the respective neural responses evoked by the different streams of stimuli. Moreover, by using superimposed stimuli, we controlled for possible effects of preferential looking, spatial attention, and disengagement. Based on four trials of 60 s, we observed a significant three-way interaction. In the control group, the frequency-tagged neural responses to faces were larger than those to houses, especially in lateral occipito-temporal channels, while the responses to houses were larger over medial occipital channels. In the ASD group, however, faces and houses did not elicit significantly different neural responses in any of the regions. Given the short recording time of the frequency-tagging paradigm with multiple simultaneous inputs and the robustness of the individual responses, the method could be used as a sensitive marker of social preference in a wide range of populations, including younger and challenging populations.
Highlights
Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are characterized by impairments in social communication and interaction, and the presence of restricted and repetitive patterns of interests and behavior
Statistical analyses showed a main effect of stimulus type [F(1,441) = 5.02; p = 0.026] [faces (1.20 μV) larger than houses (1.08 μV) and a main effect of regions of interest (ROI) (F(2,441)= 58.10, p
While over the ROT channels the responses were higher to faces (1.26 μV) than to houses (0.91 μV) in the typically developing (TD) group, this effect did not reach significance [T(441) = 2.75, p = 0.207]
Summary
Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are characterized by impairments in social communication and interaction, and the presence of restricted and repetitive patterns of interests and behavior. They often struggle with social interactions in daily life [1]. Due to differences in neural reward processing, autistic people may not experience social stimuli as rewarding as neurotypical people do [e.g., [10,11,12]]. Findings on this matter have not been entirely consistent. Whether attentional processing is impaired for social stimuli or for more complex stimuli in general, remains inconclusive [13]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
