Brief Report: Flanker Visual Filtering Ability in Older Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Psychology
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often exhibit difficulties with visual filtering, particularly resisting interference from distractors.
• Previous research indicates this deficit may be more significant in younger children with ASD compared to older individuals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate visual filtering inhibitory abilities in older adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
• To determine if previously observed visual filtering impairments persist into adolescence or if compensatory mechanisms emerge.

Main Methods:

• A flanker visual filtering task was employed.
• Participants included 36 adolescents diagnosed with ASD and 44 neurotypical adolescents, aged 11-20 years.

Main Results:

• No significant differences in visual filtering performance were found between adolescents with ASD and their neurotypical peers.
• This indicates that visual filtering abilities are comparable in older adolescents across both groups.

Conclusions:

• The findings suggest that visual filtering impairments observed in younger children with ASD may resolve during adolescence.
• Alternatively, individuals with ASD may develop effective compensatory strategies to manage visual distractor interference by adolescence.