Neural Mechanisms of Vicarious Reward Processing in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Rachel K Greene,Joshua Bizzell,Cara R Damiano-Goodwin,Gabriel S Dichter,Erin Walsh

doi:10.1155/2020/8014248

Abstract

Previous studies examining the neural substrates of reward processing in ASD have explored responses to rewards for oneself but not rewards earned for others (i.e., vicarious reward). This omission is notable given that vicarious reward processing is a critical component of creating and maintaining social relationships. The current study examined the neural mechanisms of vicarious reward processing in 15 adults with ASD and 15 age- and gender-matched typically developing controls. Individuals with ASD demonstrated attenuated activation of reward-related regions during vicarious reward processing. Altered connectivity was also observed in individuals with ASD during reward receipt. These findings of altered neural sensitivity to vicarious reward processing may represent a mechanism that hinders the development of social abilities in ASD.

Highlights

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social communicative impairments, as well as rigid, repetitive behaviors and restricted interests [1]
Evidence for impaired social motivation in ASD [2,3,4], along with enhanced motivation to engage in activities related to repetitive behaviors and restricted interests [5, 6] suggests that the processing of rewards may be broadly dysregulated in ASD
Response times (RTs) for successful reward trials are depicted in Figure 1 and were compared via a 2 (Group: ASD, typically developing controls (TDCs)) × 2 (Reward Recipient: Self, Other)

Summary

Introduction

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social communicative impairments, as well as rigid, repetitive behaviors and restricted interests [1]. Evidence for impaired social motivation in ASD [2,3,4], along with enhanced motivation to engage in activities related to repetitive behaviors and restricted interests [5, 6] suggests that the processing of rewards may be broadly dysregulated in ASD. Recent behavioral and fMRI studies in ASD support this pattern of dysregulated reward processing [7,8,9,10,11,12,13]. Ere is support for differences in vicarious reward responses in individuals with ASD using behavioral tasks. Mosner et al [25] reported that individuals with ASD demonstrated

Methods

Results

Conclusion