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Updated: Jul 15, 2026
09:13
Testing Sensory and Multisensory Function in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Published on: April 22, 2015
Tactile perception in adults with autism: a multidimensional psychophysical study
Carissa Cascio1, Francis McGlone, Stephen Folger
1Center for Neurodevelopmental Disorders Research, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA. cjcascio@med.unc.edu
Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
|April 7, 2007
Summary
Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show typical light touch and temperature perception but heightened sensitivity to vibration and thermal pain. This suggests specific sensory processing differences in autism.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychology
- Sensory Processing
Background:
- Sensory processing differences are common in autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
- Rigorous psychophysical research on tactile sensation in adults with ASD is limited.
- Tactile sensitivity, particularly to social/affiliative stimuli, is a key area of interest.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare tactile sensation thresholds and ratings between adults with and without autism.
- To investigate sensory perception on the palm and forearm, including responses to light touch, temperature, vibration, and texture.
- To explore potential differences in somatosensation submodalities in autism.
Main Methods:
- Psychophysical testing was conducted on adults with and without autism.
- Participants completed tasks assessing thresholds for light touch, warmth, and cool sensations.
- Hedonic ratings of texture pleasantness and sensitivity to vibration and thermal pain were evaluated on the palm and forearm.
Main Results:
- No significant differences were found in light touch, warmth, or cool detection thresholds between groups.
- Both groups provided similar hedonic ratings for texture pleasantness.
- Individuals with autism exhibited increased sensitivity to vibration on the forearm and thermal pain at both tested sites.
Conclusions:
- Tactile perception in adults with autism is largely typical, with normal detection of light touch and innocuous temperatures.
- Enhanced sensitivity to vibration and thermal pain suggests specific alterations in sensory processing within the autism population.
- Findings align with previous research indicating both typical and heightened sensory experiences in autism.
Related Concept Videos
01:27Tactile and Chemical Senses
Tactile senses encompass touch, temperature, and pain, each mediated by specific receptors. Touch receptors detect mechanical energy or pressure against the skin. Sensory fibers from these receptors enter the spinal cord and relay information to the brain stem. Here, most fibers cross over to the opposite side of the brain. The touch information then moves to the thalamus, which projects a map of the body's surface onto the somatosensory areas of the parietal lobes in the cerebral cortex. This...
01:33Somatosensation
The somatosensory system relays sensory information from the skin, mucous membranes, limbs, and joints. Somatosensation is more familiarly known as the sense of touch. A typical somatosensory pathway includes three types of long neurons: primary, secondary, and tertiary. Primary neurons have cell bodies located near the spinal cord in groups of neurons called dorsal root ganglia. The sensory neurons of ganglia innervate designated areas of skin called dermatomes.
01:19Autism Spectrum Disorder
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental condition marked by persistent deficits in social communication and interaction alongside restrictive and repetitive behaviors or interests. ASD is sometimes accompanied by intellectual impairment.
These core symptoms manifest differently among individuals, ranging from mild to severe. The disorder's complexity extends beyond its clinical presentation, encompassing a diverse range of biological, cognitive, and sociocultural influences.
These core symptoms manifest differently among individuals, ranging from mild to severe. The disorder's complexity extends beyond its clinical presentation, encompassing a diverse range of biological, cognitive, and sociocultural influences.
01:11Sensory Perception: Organization of the Somatosensory System
The somatosensory system is the central and peripheral nervous system component that senses and processes touch, pressure, pain, temperature, and body position or proprioception. The process of sensation takes place at three levels:
The receptor level:
The receptor level is the first stage of sensation. It involves the detection of a stimulus by specialized sensory receptors. The stimulus must arrive within the receptor's receptive field. Next, the receptor converts the energy of the stimulus...
The receptor level:
The receptor level is the first stage of sensation. It involves the detection of a stimulus by specialized sensory receptors. The stimulus must arrive within the receptor's receptive field. Next, the receptor converts the energy of the stimulus...
01:15Sensory Modalities
Sensation typically is the process by which the sensory receptors and sense organs detect stimuli from the internal and external environment and transmit this information to the central nervous system for processing.
General senses refer to the broad category of sensory information detected by receptors in the body and can be further grouped into somatic and visceral senses. Somatic sensations include touch, pressure, temperature, and pain and are essential for navigating our environment and...
General senses refer to the broad category of sensory information detected by receptors in the body and can be further grouped into somatic and visceral senses. Somatic sensations include touch, pressure, temperature, and pain and are essential for navigating our environment and...