scholarly journals Adaptation and serial choice bias are unaltered in autism

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ella Bosch ◽  
Matthias Fritsche ◽  
Christian Utzerath ◽  
Jan K. Buitelaar ◽  
Floris P. de Lange
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Visual Perception ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Adaptation Effect ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
The Past ◽  
Oriented Line ◽  
Choice Bias

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or autism is characterized by social and non-social symptoms, including sensory hyper- and hyposensitivities. A suggestion has been put forward that some of these symptoms could be explained by differences in how sensory information is integrated with its context, including a lower tendency to leverage the past in the processing of new perceptual input. At least two history-dependent effects of opposite directions have been described in the visual perception literature: a repulsive adaptation effect, where perception of a stimulus is biased away from an adaptor stimulus, and an attractive serial choice bias, where perceptual choices are biased towards the previous choice. In this study, we investigated whether autistic participants differed in either bias from typically developing controls (TD). Sixty-four adolescent participants (31 with ASD, 33 TD) were asked to categorize oriented line stimuli in two tasks which were designed so that we would induce either adaptation or serial choice bias. Although our tasks successfully induced both biases, in comparing the two groups, we found no differences in the magnitude of adaptation nor in the modulation of perceptual choices by the previous choice. In conclusion, we find no evidence of a decreased integration of the past in visual perception of autistic individuals.

Profiles of Autonomic Activity in Autism Spectrum Disorder with and without Anxiety

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valentina Parma ◽  
Nicola Cellini ◽  
Lisa Guy ◽  
Alana McVey ◽  
Keiran Rump ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Anxiety Disorders ◽  
Physiological Activity ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Parasympathetic Activity ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Physiological Profile ◽  
School Aged Children ◽  
Advance Research

Objective: Anxiety disorders are common among youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Both anxiety and ASD are associated with differences in physiological activity. To date, few studies have investigated the physiological profile of youth with ASD and even fewer have systematically assessed how the co-occurrence of anxiety disorders and ASD modulates resting physiological activity.Method: The aim of the present study was to evaluate sympathetic and parasympathetic activity at rest in 75 school-aged children and adolescents with ASD, with (ASD+Anxiety = 22, 6F) and without co-occurring anxiety (ASD Alone =15, 6F) and to compare their physiological profile with that of matched typically developing controls (TDC) with (Anxiety Alone = 16, 6F) and without co-occurring anxiety disorders (TDC = 22, 8F).Results: Results indicated reduced sympathetic and parasympathetic activity at rest in ASD as compared to TDC youth without anxiety. The ASD+Anxiety and Anxiety Alone groups showed different sympathetic, but similar parasympathetic, activity. Correlational, multivariate, and regression analyses indicated that the four groups differed among several physiological and subjective measures.Conclusion: These findings suggest that ASD and anxiety are associated with distinct profiles of autonomic nervous system activity that cannot be reduced to either the sympathetic or parasympathetic branch alone. An autonomic profile-based approach is more likely to advance research, diagnosis, and treatment of ASD and anxiety than unidimensional, single-modality approaches.

scholarly journals Developmental Language Disorder and Autism: Commonalities and Differences on Language

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 589
Author(s):  
Natasa Georgiou ◽  
George Spanoudis
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Language Impairment ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Autism Group ◽  
Developmental Conditions

Language and communication deficits characterize both autism spectrum disorder and developmental language disorder, and the possibility of there being a common profile of these is a matter of tireless debate in the research community. This experimental study addresses the relation of these two developmental conditions in the critical topic of language. Α total of 103 children (79 males, 24 females) participated in the present study. Specifically, the study’s sample consisted of 40 children with autism, 28 children with developmental language disorder, and 35 typically developing children between 6 and 12 years old. All children completed language and cognitive measures. The results showed that there is a subgroup inside the autism group of children who demonstrate language difficulties similar to children with developmental language disorder. Specifically, two different subgroups were derived from the autism group; those with language impairment and those without. Both autism and language-impaired groups scored lower than typically developing children on all language measures indicating a common pathology in language ability. The results of this study shed light on the relation between the two disorders, supporting the assumption of a subgroup with language impairment inside the autism spectrum disorder population. The common picture presented by the two developmental conditions highlights the need for further research in the field.

Mental health correlates and potential childhood predictors for the wish to be of the opposite sex in young autistic adults

Autism ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 136236132110240
Author(s):  
Jung-Chi Chang ◽  
Meng-Chuan Lai ◽  
Yueh-Ming Tai ◽  
Susan Shur-Fen Gau
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Item Endorsement ◽  
Opposite Sex ◽  
Autistic Adults

Cross-sectional research has demonstrated the overrepresentation of gender dysphoria in children and adults with autism spectrum disorder. However, the predictors and underlying mechanisms of this co-occurrence remain unclear. This follow-up study aimed to explore baseline (childhood/adolescence) predictors for the follow-up (adulthood) self-reported wish to be of the opposite sex and to investigate its mental health correlates in a sample of 88 autistic individuals as compared with 42 typically developing controls. An item on the Adult Self-Report Inventory-4, “I wish I was the opposite sex,” was used. We compared mental health symptoms between adults with and without this item endorsement. We used prediction models to explore family and autism-related predictors in childhood/adolescence to endorse this item in adulthood. There were more adults endorsing the item in the autism spectrum disorder group compared with the typically developing group. Autistic adults who endorsed the item experienced more mental health challenges, more bullying victimization, more suicidal ideations, and worse quality of life. Lower parent-reported family support and more stereotyped/repetitive behaviors during childhood/adolescence predicted the self-reported wish to be of the opposite sex in adulthood in autistic individuals. It is necessary to raise more attention to gender development and related mental health impact in autistic individuals. Lay abstract Autistic people/people with autism spectrum disorder are more likely to experience gender dysphoria. However, the possible longitudinal predictors and underlying mechanisms of this co-occurrence are unclear. To fill this knowledge gap, we assessed 88 people with autism spectrum disorder and 42 typically developing individuals at their average ages of 13.0 (baseline, childhood/adolescence) and 20.2 years old (follow-up, adulthood). At follow-up, their endorsement on the item “I wish I was the opposite sex” was used to evaluate gender dysphoric symptoms. We compared mental health symptoms between adults with and without this item endorsement at the follow-up assessment. We explored parent-reported family and autism characteristics-related predictors in childhood/adolescence to this item endorsement in adulthood. We found that more autistic adults reported the wish to be of the opposite sex than did typically developing individuals. Autistic adults who endorsed this item experienced more mental health challenges, more school bullying and cyberbullying, more suicidal ideation, and worse quality of life. Moreover, parent-reported lower family support and more stereotyped/repetitive behaviors during childhood/adolescence predicted the self-reported wish to be of the opposite sex in adulthood in autistic individuals. More attention and support should be provided to autistic people regarding gender development and related mental health and quality of life impact, especially during the transition period to young adulthood.

Comparison of cognitive functions children with the autism spectrum disorders and schizophrenia

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. S457-S458
Author(s):  
N. Zvereva ◽  
N. Simashkova ◽  
A. Koval-Zaitsev
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Visual Perception ◽  
Cognitive Functioning ◽  
Cognitive Functions ◽  
Early Onset ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Early Onset Schizophrenia ◽  
Competing Interest ◽  
Autistic Disorders

IntroductionAutism spectrum disorder and early onset schizophrenia have many similar symptoms, however, these are different disorders. It is important to identify the main similarities\differences in the structure of cognitive impairment to define further assistance these children correctly. We distinguished two options for cognitive defect (total and partial) in children with schizophrenia.AimsComparison of cognitive functions at children with autism spectrum disorder and early onset schizophrenia.ObjectivesTwo groups with autism spectrum disorder (ASD1 – 22 patients of MHRC mean age 8.9; ASD2 – 27 pupils of special school mean age 7,4). Two groups with early onset schizophrenia (F20.8 – 16 patients of MHRC mean age 10,2; F21 – 18 patients of MHRC mean age 10.0).MethodsBattery of pathopsychological tests for assessing cognitive functions (memory, attention, thinking), test figures of Leeper for visual perception. Z-scales were used for estimation of cognitive deficit or defect.ResultsPatients demonstrate variety of cognitive functioning. Normal cognitive functioning: ASD1* – 22%, F20.8 – 18%, F21* – 50% (* – P ≤ 0.05); partial cognitive defect: ASD1 – 27%, F20.8 – 18%, F21 – 22%; total cognitive defect: ASD1** – 50%, F20.8 – 64%, F21** – 27% (** – P ≤ 0.01). ASD1 and F20 were the worth in thinking. Children ASD1 and ASD2 demonstrate similar success in recognizing Leeper's figures.ConclusionsThere are some common features of cognitive development in children with severe forms of ASD and early onset schizophrenia, first of all in thinking.No significant differences obtained between severe – mild forms of autistic disorders in visual perception (ASD1 and ASD2).Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

575 Sleep Duration in American Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and the Role of Physical Activity

SLEEP ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. A227-A227
Author(s):  
Stacey Elkhatib Smidt ◽  
Nalaka Gooneratne ◽  
Edward Brodkin ◽  
Maja Bucan ◽  
Jonathan Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Sleep Duration ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Physically Active ◽  
Caregiver Education ◽  
The Past ◽  
Interaction Terms ◽  
American Children

Abstract Introduction Sleep dysfunction is prevalent in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and can have major daytime behavioral consequences. Emerging evidence suggests that physical activity may be associated with improved sleep in children, including those with ASD. We aimed to determine if there was an association between physical activity and sleep duration in American youth and if the association was consistent in children with and without ASD. Methods We analyzed data from children ages 6–17 years whose caregivers completed the 2018 National Survey of Children’s Health (N=20,980). ASD was self-reported (N=687), and we determined if reported ASD was mild, moderate, or severe, and if reported ASD occurred with intellectual disability (ID). Participants self-reported their weekday sleep duration and days of physical activity in the past week. We classified children as sleep sufficient or insufficient based on age-specific recommendations. Logistic regression was used to determine if physical activity and ASD were associated with sleep sufficiency. Physical activity-by-ASD interaction terms were used to determine if any physical activity association was modified by ASD status. Covariates included: age, sex, race, Hispanic ethnicity, highest caregiver education level, and overweight status. Results Compared to children without ASD, children with ASD were 29% less likely to have sufficient sleep (OR=0.71; 95% CI: 0.52–0.99), but this association attenuated to the null after adjusting for physical activity (OR=0.77; 95% CI: 0.55–1.07). Compared to zero days, being physically active for 1–3, 4–6 or 7 days in the past week was associated with increased odds of sufficient sleep, even with adjustment for ASD status (e.g., 4–6 days: OR=1.85; 95% CI: 1.48–2.32). We did not observe a statistically significant interaction between physical activity and ASD status with respect to sleep sufficiency (P-interaction=0.571), which remained consistent when using ASD severity and ASD with ID exposure variables. Conclusion Physical activity was associated with increased odds of meeting age-specific sleep duration recommendations in children with and without ASD. Our observations support pursuing physical activity in future studies as a potential intervention target to improve sleep duration in children, including those with ASD. Support (if any) NIH T32HL07713 and University of Pennsylvania’s Institute for Translational Medicine and Therapeutics

scholarly journals Early screening of autism spectrum disorder using cry features

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aida Khozaei ◽  
Hadi Moradi ◽  
Reshad Hosseini ◽  
Hamidreza Pouretemad ◽  
Bahareh Eskandari
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
New Classification ◽  
Early Screening ◽  
Classification Approach ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Sensitivity Specificity

AbstractDue to the importance of automatic and early autism screening, in this paper, a cry-based screening approach for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is introduced. During the study, we realized that the ASD specific features are not necessarily observable among all children with ASD and among all instances of each child. Therefore, we proposed a new classification approach to be able to find such features and their corresponding instances. We tested the proposed approach and found two features that can be used to distinguish groups of children with ASD from Typically Developing (TD) children. In other words, these features are present in subsets of children with ASD not all of them. The approach has been tested on a dataset including 14 boys and 7 girls with ASD and 14 TD boys and 7 TD girls, between 18 to 53 months old. The sensitivity, specificity, and precision of the proposed approach for boys were 85.71%, 100%, and 92.85%, respectively. These measures were 71.42%, 100%, and 85.71% for girls, respectively.

scholarly journals Sensory processing of children and students with autism spectrum disorder and typical development in relation to gender and age

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 185-201
Author(s):  
Ana Roknić ◽  
Sanja Vuković
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Sensory Processing ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Sensory Profile ◽  
Typical Development ◽  
Educational Plan ◽  
Gender And Age ◽  
Sensory Profiles

Introduction. Sensory processing is a neurobiological process in which a person uses their senses, sends information to an appropriate reception and processing center, and responds to environmental stimulations. Previous research has shown that sensory processing difficulties are more common among people with autism spectrum disorder than among people of the typical population. Objectives. The aim of this paper was to determine the patterns of sensory processing in subjects of the typical population and subjects with autism spectrum disorder, as well as gender and age differences in sensory profiles in these groups of subjects. Methods. Using The Child Sensory Profile 2 as the measuring instrument, the characteristics of sensory processing were examined in 120 subjects of both genders, 60 subjects with autism spectrum disorder and 60 subjects of typical development, ages three to 13 years and 11 months. Results. The obtained results show that there are differences between the two groups of respondents and that these differences occur in all nine subscales of the instrument. It was found that subjects with autismspectrumdisorder hadmore difficulty in processing sensory information compared to subjects of the typical population, especially in the domain of tactile perception. The results also show that the quality of sensory information processing in both groups of respondents improved with age. In relation to the respondents' gender, the obtained differences were significant in the domain of the total score of the instrument, in favor of the boys, but this was not observed in the measurements on all subscales. Conclusion. In accordance with the above findings, when creating an individual educational plan, it is necessary to take into account all the specifics of sensory processing of children with autism spectrum disorder.

Erratum: Stanish et al. (2015)

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 326
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Intellectual Disabilities ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Perceived Barriers ◽  
Activity Levels ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Link Type ◽  
Activity Enjoyment

In the article Stanish, H., Curtin, C., Must, A., Phillips, S., Maslin, M., and Bandini, L. (2015). Enjoyment, barriers, and beliefs about physical activity in adolescents with and without autism spectrum disorder. Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly, 32(4), 302-317. doi:10.1123/APAQ.2015-0038, the authors omitted acknowledgment that the study was an extension of a larger (parent) study that compared physical activity levels and correlates among adolescents with intellectual disabilities (ID) and typically developing (TD) adolescents. Some of the methods for the study published in this journal are identical to those in the parent study, and the same comparison group of TD adolescents was used for both disability groups (ID and autism spectrum disorder). The online version of the article has been corrected.The parent study was published as Stanish, H.I., Curtin, C., Must, A., Phillips, S., Maslin, M., & Bandini, L. (2016). Physical activity enjoyment, perceived barriers, and beliefs among adolescents with and without intellectual disabilities. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 13(1), 102–110. doi:10.1123/jpah.2014-0548.

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