Early development of social attention in toddlers at high familial risk for autism spectrum disorder

Abstract Objective Predictive testing for familial disorders can guide healthcare and reproductive decisions. Familial disorders with onset in childhood (e.g., autism spectrum disorder [ASD]) are promising targets for presymptomatic prediction; however, little is known about parent perceptions of risk to their children in the presymptomatic period. The current study examined risk perceptions in parents of infants at high familial risk for ASD enrolled in a longitudinal study of brain and behavior development. Methods Semistructured interviews were conducted with 37 parents of high-risk infants during the presymptomatic window (3–15 months) that precedes an ASD diagnosis. Infants were identified as high familial risk due to having an older sibling with ASD. Parent interview responses were coded and interpreted to distill emerging themes. Results The majority of parents were aware of the increased risk of ASD for their infants, and risk perceptions were influenced by comparisons to their older child with ASD. Parents reported a variety of negative emotions in response to perceived risk, including worry, fear, and sadness, and described impacts of perceived risk on their behavior: increased vigilance to emerging symptoms, altered reproductive and healthcare decisions, and seeking ongoing assessment through research. Conclusions Parents of children at high familial risk for childhood-onset disorders like ASD face a period of challenging uncertainty during early development. In anticipation of a future in which presymptomatic testing for ASD is made available, it is important to understand how parents react to and cope with the elevated—but still highly uncertain—risk conveyed by family history.

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Reduced engagement with social stimuli in 6-month-old infants with later autism spectrum disorder: a longitudinal prospective study of infants at high familial risk

Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders ◽

10.1186/s11689-016-9139-8 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 47

Author(s):

E. J. H. Jones ◽

K. Venema ◽

R. Earl ◽

R. Lowy ◽

K. Barnes ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽

Prospective Study ◽

Familial Risk ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Spectrum Disorder ◽

Social Stimuli

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Maternal and Paternal Infertility Disorders and Treatments and Autism Spectrum Disorder: Findings from the Study to Explore Early Development

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders ◽

10.1007/s10803-017-3283-1 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 47 (12) ◽

pp. 3994-4005 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Laura A. Schieve ◽

Carolyn Drews-Botsch ◽

Shericka Harris ◽

Craig Newschaffer ◽

Julie Daniels ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽

Early Development ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Spectrum Disorder

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Social Attention Deficits in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Task Dependence of Objects vs. Faces Observation Bias

Frontiers in Psychiatry ◽

10.3389/fpsyt.2021.640599 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Susana Mouga ◽

João Castelhano ◽

Cátia Café ◽

Daniela Sousa ◽

Frederico Duque ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽

Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Social Attention ◽

Spectrum Disorder ◽

Attention Deficits ◽

Social Stimuli ◽

Task Dependence ◽

Observation Bias ◽

Autism Diagnostic Observation

Social attention deficits represent a central impairment of patients suffering from autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but the nature of such deficits remains controversial. We compared visual attention regarding social (faces) vs. non-social stimuli (objects), in an ecological diagnostic context, in 46 children and adolescents divided in two groups: ASD (N = 23) and typical neurodevelopment (TD) (N = 23), matched for chronological age and intellectual performance. Eye-tracking measures of visual scanning, while exploring and describing scenes from three different tasks from the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS), were analyzed: “Description of a Picture,” “Cartoons,” and “Telling a Story from a Book.” Our analyses revealed a three-way interaction between Group, Task, and Social vs. Object Stimuli. We found a striking main effect of group and a task dependence of attentional allocation: while the TD attended first and longer to faces, ASD participants became similar to TD when they were asked to look at pictures while telling a story. Our results suggest that social attention allocation is task dependent, raising the question whether spontaneous attention deficits can be rescued by guiding goal-directed actions.

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