| 1. |
- Bussu, Giorgia, et al.
(author)
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Manipulation of phasic arousal by auditory cues is associated with subsequent changes in visual orienting to faces in infancy
- 2023
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In: Scientific Reports. - : Springer Nature. - 2045-2322. ; 13:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This eye-tracking study investigated the effect of sound-induced arousal on social orienting under different auditory cue conditions in 5-month-old (n = 25; n = 13 males) and 10-month-old infants (n = 21; n = 14 males) participating in a spontaneous visual search task. Results showed: (1) larger pupil dilation discriminating between high and low volume (b = 0.02, p = 0.007), but not between social and non-social sounds (b = 0.004, p = 0.64); (2) faster visual orienting (b = − 0.09, p < 0.001) and better social orienting at older age (b = 0.94, p < 0.001); (3) a fast habituation effect on social orienting after high-volume sounds (χ2(2) = 7.39, p = 0.025); (4) a quadratic association between baseline pupil size and target selection (b = − 1.0, SE = 0.5, χ2(1) = 4.04, p = 0.045); (5) a positive linear association between pupil dilation and social orienting (b = 0.09, p = 0.039). Findings support adaptive gain theories of arousal, extending the link between phasic pupil dilation and task performance to spontaneous social orienting in infancy.
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| 2. |
- Espinosa, Lisa, et al.
(author)
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Enhanced social learning of threat in adults with autism
- 2020
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In: Molecular Autism. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2040-2392. ; 11:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Recent theories have linked autism to challenges in prediction learning and social cognition. It is unknown, however, how autism affects learning about threats from others "demonstrators"through observation, which contains predictive learning based on social information. The aims of this study are therefore to investigate social fear learning in individual with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and to examine whether typically developing social cognition is necessary for successful observational learning. Methods: Adults with ASD (n = 23) and neurotypical controls (n = 25) completed a social fear learning (SFL) procedure in which participants watched a "demonstrator"receiving electrical shocks in conjunction with a previously neutral conditioned stimulus (CS+), but never with a safe control stimulus (CS-). Skin conductance was used to measure autonomic responses of learned threat responses to the CS+ versus CS-. Visual attention was measured during learning using eye tracking. To establish a non-social learning baseline, each participant also underwent a test of Pavlovian conditioning. Results: During learning, individuals with ASD attended less to the demonstrator's face, and when later tested, displayed stronger observational, but not Pavlovian, autonomic indices of learning (skin conductance) compared to controls. In controls, both higher levels of attention to the demonstrator's face and trait empathy predicted diminished expressions of learning during test. Limitations: The relatively small sample size of this study and the typical IQ range of the ASD group limit the generalizability of our findings to individuals with ASD in the average intellectual ability range. Conclusions: The enhanced social threat learning in individuals with ASD may be linked to difficulties using visual attention and mental state attributions to downregulate their emotion.
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| 3. |
- Falck-Ytter, Terje, Professor, 1979-, et al.
(author)
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Social attention : Developmental foundations and relevance for autism spectrum disorder
- 2023
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In: Biological Psychiatry. - : Elsevier. - 0006-3223 .- 1873-2402. ; 94:1, s. 8-17
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The use of the term Social Attention (SA) in the cognitive neuroscience and developmental psychopathology literature has increased exponentially in recent years, in part motivated by the aim to understand the early development of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Unfortunately, theoretical discussions around the term have lagged behind its various uses. Here, we evaluate SA through a review of key candidate SA phenotypes emerging early in life, from newborn gaze cueing and preference for face-like configurations to later emerging skills such as joint attention. We argue that most of the considered SA phenotypes are unlikely to represent unique socio-attentional processes but have to be understood in the broader context of bottom-up and emerging top-down (domain-general) attention. Some types of SA behaviors (e.g., initiation of joint attention) are linked to the early development of ASD, but this may reflect differences in social motivation rather than attention per se. Several SA candidates are not linked to ASD early in life, including the ones that may represent uniquely socio-attentional processes (e.g., orienting to faces, predicting others’ manual action goals). Although SA may be a useful super-ordinate category under which one can organize certain research questions, the widespread use of the term without proper definition is problematic. Characterizing gaze patterns and visual attention in infants at elevated likelihood for ASD in social contexts may facilitate early detection, but conceptual clarity regarding the underlying processes at play are needed to sharpen research questions and identify potential targets for early intervention.
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| 4. |
- Frick, Matilda, et al.
(author)
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Disrupted Attention to Other’s Eyes is Linked to Symptoms of ADHD in Childhood
- 2023
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In: Child Psychiatry and Human Development. - : Springer. - 0009-398X .- 1573-3327. ; 54:4, s. 973-984
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is associated with impaired social interaction. Other’s eyes are important for understanding the social world. Here, we examined concurrent and longitudinal links between attention to other’s eyes and symptoms of ADHD and comorbid externalizing and internalizing symptoms. Eighty-two 8 to 13-year-old children (40% with ADHD) participated. The latency to a first gaze shift to and away from the eye region of human faces, when primed to look at either the eyes or the mouth, was recorded with eye tracking. Parents rated ADHD, externalizing and internalizing symptoms at the time of testing and at 2-year follow-up. The results show that longer looking at the eyes before reorienting was specifically associated with concurrent and future symptoms of inattention, even when accounting for comorbid symptoms. We conclude that the temporal microstructure of attention to other’s eyes is altered in children with symptoms of ADHD, which may contribute to social impairments.
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| 5. |
- Galazka, Martyna A, 1984, et al.
(author)
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Pupil contagion variation with gaze, arousal, and autistic traits
- 2024
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In: Scientific Reports. - 2045-2322. ; 14
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Pupillary contagion occurs when one’s pupil size unconsciously adapts to the pupil size of an observed individual and is presumed to reflect the transfer of arousal. Importantly, when estimating pupil contagion, low level stimuli properties need to be controlled for, to ensure that observations of pupillary changes are due to internal change in arousal rather than the external differences between stimuli. Here, naturalistic images of children’s faces depicting either small or large pupils were presented to a group of children and adolescents with a wide range of autistic traits, a third of whom had been diagnosed with autism. We examined the extent to which pupillary contagion reflects autonomic nervous system reaction through pupil size change, heart rate and skin conductance response. Our second aim was to determine the association between arousal reaction to stimuli and degree of autistic traits. Results show that pupil contagion and concomitant heart rate change, but not skin conductance change, was evident when gaze was restricted to the eye region of face stimuli. A positive association was also observed between pupillary contagion and autistic traits when participants’ gaze was constrained to the eye region. Findings add to a broader understanding of the mechanisms underlying pupillary contagion and its association with autism.
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| 6. |
- Guath, Mona, et al.
(author)
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Pupil dilation during negative prediction errors is related to brain choline concentration and depressive symptoms in adolescents
- 2023
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In: Behavioural Brain Research. - : Elsevier BV. - 0166-4328 .- 1872-7549. ; 436
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Depressive symptoms are associated with altered pupillary responses during learning and reward prediction as well as with changes in neurometabolite levels, including brain concentrations of choline, glutamate and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). However, the full link between depressive symptoms, reward-learning-related pupillary responses and neurometabolites is yet to be established as these constructs have not been assessed in the same individuals. The present pilot study, investigated these relations in a sample of 24 adolescents aged 13 years. Participants completed the Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS) and underwent a reward learning task while measuring pupil dilation and a single voxel dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) MEGA-PRESS magnetic resonance spectroscopy scan assessing choline, glutamate and GABA concentrations. Pupil dilation was related to prediction errors (PE) during learning, which was captured by a prediction error-weighted pupil dilation response index (PE-PDR) for each individual. Higher PE-PDR scores, indicating larger pupil dilations to negative prediction errors, were related to lower depressive symptoms and lower dACC choline concentrations. Dorsal ACC choline was positively associated with depressive symptoms, whereas glutamate and GABA were not related to PE-PDR or depressive symptoms. The findings support notions of cholinergic involvement in depressive symptoms and cholinergic influence on reward-related pupillary response, suggesting that pupillary responses to negative prediction errors may hold promise as a biomarker of depressive states.
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| 7. |
- Guath, Mona, et al.
(author)
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Pupillary response in reward processing in adults with major depressive disorder in remission
- 2023
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In: Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society. - : Cambridge University Press. - 1355-6177 .- 1469-7661. ; 29:3, s. 306-315
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Objective:Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with impaired reward processing and reward learning. The literature is inconclusive regarding whether these impairments persist after remission. The current study examined reward processing during a probabilistic learning task in individuals in remission from MDD (n = 19) and never depressed healthy controls (n = 31) matched for age and sex. The outcome measures were pupil dilation (an indirect index of noradrenergic activity and arousal) and computational modeling parameters.Method:Participants completed two versions (facial/nonfacial feedback) of probabilistic reward learning task with changing contingencies. Pupil dilation was measured with a corneal reflection eye tracker. The hypotheses and analysis plan were preregistered.Result:Healthy controls had larger pupil dilation following losses than gains (p <.001), whereas no significant difference between outcomes was found in individuals with a history of MDD, resulting in an interaction between group and outcome (beta = 0.81, SE = 0.34, t = 2.37, p = .018). The rMDD group also achieved lower mean score at the last trial (t[46.77] = 2.12, p = .040) as well as a smaller proportion of correct choices (t[46.70] = 2.09, p = .041) compared with healthy controls.Conclusion:Impaired reward processing may persist after remission from MDD and could constitute a latent risk factor for relapse. Measuring pupil dilation in a reward learning task is a promising method for identifying reward processing abnormalities linked to MDD. The task is simple and noninvasive, which makes it feasible for clinical research.
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| 8. |
- Hendry, Alexandra, et al.
(author)
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Atypical Development of Attentional Control Associates with Later Adaptive Functioning, Autism and ADHD Traits
- 2020
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In: Journal of autism and developmental disorders. - : Springer Nature. - 0162-3257 .- 1573-3432. ; 50:11, s. 4085-4105
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Autism is frequently associated with difficulties with top-down attentional control, which impact on individuals’ mental health and quality of life. The developmental processes involved in these attentional difficulties are not well understood. Using a data-driven approach, 2 samples (N = 294 and 412) of infants at elevated and typical likelihood of autism were grouped according to profiles of parent report of attention at 10, 15 and 25 months. In contrast to the normative profile of increases in attentional control scores between infancy and toddlerhood, a minority (7–9%) showed plateauing attentional control scores between 10 and 25 months. Consistent with pre-registered hypotheses, plateaued growth of attentional control was associated with elevated autism and ADHD traits, and lower adaptive functioning at age 3 years.
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| 9. |
- Jonsdottir, Lilja Kristin, et al.
(author)
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Autistic children quickly orient away from both eyes and mouths during face observation
- 2023
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In: Journal of autism and developmental disorders. - : Springer Nature. - 0162-3257 .- 1573-3432. ; 53:1, s. 495-502
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Studies have supported two different hypotheses of reduced eye gaze in people with ASD; gaze avoidance and gaze indifference, while less is known about the role of anxiety. We tested these hypotheses using an eye-tracking paradigm that cued the eyes or mouth of emotional faces. Autistic children (n = 12, mean age 7 years) looked faster away from both eyes and mouths than controls (n = 22). This effect was not explained by anxiety symptoms. No difference was found in latency towards either area. These results indicate that attentional avoidance of autistic children is not specific to eyes, and that they do not show attentional indifference to eyes compared to controls. Atypicalities in visual scanning in ASD are possibly unrelated to specific facial areas.
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| 10. |
- Kleberg, Johan Lundin, et al.
(author)
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Autistic traits and symptoms of social anxiety are differentially related to attention to others' eyes in Social Anxiety Disorder
- 2017
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In: Journal of autism and developmental disorders. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0162-3257 .- 1573-3432. ; 47:12, s. 3814-3821
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and social anxiety disorder (SAD) have partly overlapping symptoms. Gaze avoidance has been linked to both SAD and ASD, but little is known about differences in social attention between the two conditions. We studied eye movements in a group of treatment-seeking adolescents with SAD (N = 25), assessing SAD and ASD dimensionally. The results indicated a double dissociation between two measures of social attention and the two symptom dimensions. Controlling for social anxiety, elevated autistic traits were associated with delayed orienting to eyes presented among distractors. In contrast, elevated social anxiety levels were associated with faster orienting away from the eyes, when controlling for autistic traits. This distinction deepens our understanding of ASD and SAD.
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