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Access to awareness of direct gaze is related to autistic traits

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 June 2018

Apoorva Rajiv Madipakkam ,
Marcus Rothkirch ,
Isabel Dziobek  and
Philipp Sterzer
Apoorva Rajiv Madipakkam*
Affiliation:
Visual Perception Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117 Berlin, Germany International Graduate Program Medical Neurosciences, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Luisenstr. 56, 10117 Berlin, Germany
Marcus Rothkirch
Affiliation:
Visual Perception Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117 Berlin, Germany
Isabel Dziobek
Affiliation:
Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Institute of Psychology, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Unter den Linden 6, 10099 Berlin, Germany
Philipp Sterzer
Affiliation:
Visual Perception Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117 Berlin, Germany Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Institute of Psychology, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Unter den Linden 6, 10099 Berlin, Germany
*
Author for correspondence: Apoorva Rajiv Madipakkam, E-mail: apoorva-rajiv.madipakkam@charite.de
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Abstract

Background

The atypical processing of eye contact is a characteristic hallmark of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The severity of these symptoms, however, is thought to lie on a continuum that extends into the typical population. While behavioural evidence shows that differences in social cognitive tasks in typically developed (TD) adults are related to the levels of autistic-like traits, it remains unknown whether such a relation exists for the sensitivity to direct gaze.

Methods

In two experiments, we measured reaction times to detect the faces with direct and averted gaze, suppressed from awareness, i.e. the access to awareness. In experiment 1, we tested N = 19 clinically diagnosed adults with ASD and N = 22 TD matched controls, while in experiment 2, we tested an independent sample of N = 20 TD adults.

Results

In line with the literature, experiment 1 showed preferential processing of direct gaze in the TD group but not in the ASD group. Importantly, we found a linear relationship in both experiments between the levels of autistic traits within the groups of TD participants and their sensitivity to direct gaze: with increasing autistic characteristics, there was a decrease in sensitivity to direct gaze.

Conclusion

These results provide the first evidence that differences in gaze processing and the sensitivity to direct gaze are already present in individuals with subclinical levels of autistic traits. Furthermore, they lend support to the continuum view of the disorder and could potentially help in an earlier diagnosis of individuals at high risk for autism.

Keywords

Autism spectrum disorderbreaking continuous flash suppressioncontinuum vieweye gaze processing
Type
Original Articles
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 49 , Issue 6 , April 2019 , pp. 980 - 986
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018 

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