Interactive Psychometrics for Autism With the Human Dynamic Clamp: Interpersonal Synchrony From Sensorimotor to Sociocognitive Domains.

Florence Baillin,Amandine Pedoux,Thomas Bourgeron,Yann Beauxis,Denis A Engemann,Aline Lefebvre,J A Scott Kelso,Anna Maruani,Richard Delorme,Guillaume Dumas,Frédérique Amsellem

doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2020.510366

Abstract

The human dynamic clamp (HDC) is a human–machine interface designed on the basis of coordination dynamics for studying realistic social interaction under controlled and reproducible conditions. Here, we propose to probe the validity of the HDC as a psychometric instrument for quantifying social abilities in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and neurotypical development. To study interpersonal synchrony with the HDC, we derived five standardized scores following a gradient from sensorimotor and motor to higher sociocognitive skills in a sample of 155 individuals (113 participants with ASD, 42 typically developing participants; aged 5 to 25 years; IQ > 70). Regression analyses were performed using normative modeling on global scores according to four subconditions (HDC behavior “cooperative/competitive,” human task “in-phase/anti-phase,” diagnosis, and age at inclusion). Children with ASD had lower scores than controls for motor skills. HDC motor coordination scores were the best candidates for stratification and diagnostic biomarkers according to exploratory analyses of hierarchical clustering and multivariate classification. Independently of phenotype, sociocognitive skills increased with developmental age while being affected by the ongoing task and HDC behavior. Weaker performance in ASD for motor skills suggests the convergent validity of the HDC for evaluating social interaction. Results provided additional evidence of a relationship between sensorimotor and sociocognitive skills. HDC may also be used as a marker of maturation of sociocognitive skills during real-time social interaction. Through its standardized and objective evaluation, the HDC not only represents a valid paradigm for the study of interpersonal synchrony but also offers a promising, clinically relevant psychometric instrument for the evaluation and stratification of sociomotor dysfunctions.

Highlights

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder [1] defined by the co-occurrence of social communication problems, repetitive behaviors, and restricted interests
We demonstrated that human dynamic clamp (HDC) is able to induce emotional reaction, especially when human participants believed that their partner was human and when movement coordination was stable [19]
Participants with ASD were younger than the control group [t(154) = 2.6, p = 2.6e-11], with a larger male/female ratio (Fisher exact, p = 0.002) than the control group

Summary

Introduction

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder [1] defined by the co-occurrence of social communication problems, repetitive behaviors, and restricted interests. With different levels of severity of symptoms, ASD is highly heterogeneous, both phenotypically [4] and genetically [5]. More than 50% of patients suffer from at least four other psychiatric comorbid conditions [6]. This strong heterogeneity complicates the development of psychometric assessment tools that allow for a personalized and thorough evaluation of a child’s skills [7]. Identification of robust, valid, and quantitative biomarkers of social communication disability, a key symptom of ASD, is a major societal challenge for improving early diagnosis and individualized care

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