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Updated: May 9, 2026
05:32
Comparing Eye-tracking Data of Children with High-functioning ASD, Comorbid ADHD, and of a Control Watching Social Videos
Published on: December 7, 2018
Evidence for gender-specific endophenotypes in high-functioning autism spectrum disorder during empathy
Karla Schneider1, Christina Regenbogen, Katharina D Pauly
1Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, Medical School, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen; JARA-Translational Brain Medicine, Aachen-Jülich.
Summary
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) shows gender differences in empathy. This study found distinct neural processing of empathy in autistic men and women, suggesting cognitive challenges for men and social reciprocity alterations for women.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychology
- Developmental Disorders
Background:
- Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibits significant behavioral gender differences, challenging its perception as a solely male disorder.
- Existing ASD research inadequately addresses the role of gender in empathy and social cognition.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate gender-specific differences in empathy abilities within high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (ASD) using functional neuroimaging.
- To explore neural correlates of empathy processing in autistic men versus women.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was employed in a cohort of 28 high-functioning ASD patients and 28 matched neurotypical controls.
- Participants viewed emotional and neutral video clips and reported their own and perceived emotions.
Main Results:
- Overall, ASD participants showed reduced empathic responses compared to controls.
- Autistic women exhibited impaired emotion recognition on neutral stimuli.
- Neural analysis revealed distinct patterns: increased medial frontal gyrus activation in autistic men vs. women, and decreased midbrain/limbic activation in autistic women compared to controls.
Conclusions:
- The study suggests that autism spectrum disorder does not involve a fundamental empathic deficit but rather gender-specific processing differences.
- Autistic men may experience greater impairments in cognitive empathy/theory of mind, while autistic women show alterations in social reciprocity.
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