Autism spectrum
disorder is a common developmental disorder affecting the communication and
behavior of a patient. Several symptoms such as being slow to respond or having
difficulty with facial expressions are common amongst those who are Autistic.
It is important to recognize that because Autism is a spectrum, the patients
with Autism have varying symptoms and treatment plans. Although people with
Autism can be high functioning and can be an integral part of society, there is
still fascinating research being done to find out when Autism develops and the
early signs that exist.
In
Pam Belluck’s article “Study of How We Look at Faces May Offer Insight Into
Autism,” discusses how strongly genetics may influence how children seek out
social experiences and facial expressions. In a study conducted, the
researchers identified data and looked at how children look at faces, “ including which features they focus on
and when they move their eyes from one place to another." In this study,
scientists “tracked the eye movements of 338 toddlers while they watched videos
of motherly women as well as of children
playing in a day care center. The toddlers, 18 months to 24 months old,
included 250 children who were developing normally (41 pairs of identical
twins, 42 pairs of nonidentical twins and 84 children unrelated to each other).
There were also 88 children with autism.” They tested the same mechanisms but
with mouths and found that they follow a similar pattern. After conducting the
research, children with autism ended up spending significantly less time
looking at faces and more time looking at objects. Those conducting the studies
were able to identify someone with autism just by looking at the eyes; as
seeking out social information was the behavior that was driven by the
genetics.
In Dr.
Maggie Guy’s research, she observes visual attention in those with autism
spectrum disorder with a primary focus on infant siblings of children. Guy
observed N290 and P400 levels as components that are strongly associated
with face processing in children. The
aim of her study was to examine electrophysiological correlates of specialized
face processing in two distinct groups of 12-month-old infants at higher risk
for Autism based on familial history. In order to do so, Guy recruited dozens
of 12-month-old infants who had no family history of ASD and were shown face
and toys upon arrival at the lab. Characters from Sesame Street were used as
attractor stimuli. The trial aimed for subjects to respond to familiar and
unfamiliar faces. Results from the experiment indicate that infants at
increased risk for ASD demonstrate unique patterns to both familiar and novel
stimuli. The results show that patterns of attention and face processing within
the first year of life suggest syndrome-specific pathways to similar behavior
outcomes. In other words, it is clear that genetics played a role in facial
recognition and anxiety based behaviors.
In both the
article and the lecture given by Dr. Guy, facial recognition seems to be the
key measurable variable for the severity of Autism at an early age. During both
experiments, children indicated a sense of anxiety at some point for novel
stimuli, which indicates some form of Autism. Both found correlation in
attention scores amongst relatives and people who are related. In fact, one
thing that was measured was the attention to specific parts of the face, such
as the mouth or the eyes. In Guy’s research, the N290 and P400 levels displayed
an inverse correlation for novel stimuli versus positive emotion. This was also
demonstrated in the twin studies conducted by the researchers in the article.
Works
Cited
2. Guy, Maggie and
Richards. John and Tonnsen. Bridgette and Roberts, Jane. (2018). Neural
correlates of face processing in etiology-distinct 12-month old infants at
high-risk of autism spectrum disorder. Developmental Cognitive. 29. 61-71. 10.
1016/ j.dcn.2017.03.002
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