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Eye Tracking Young Children with Autism
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Eye Tracking Young Children with Autism

Published on: March 27, 2012

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Sex Differences in Social Attention in Infants at Risk for Autism

Johan Lundin Kleberg1,2, Pär Nyström3, Sven Bölte4,5

  • 1Department of Psychology, Uppsala Child and Baby Lab, Uppsala University, Box 1225, 751 42, Uppsala, Sweden. Johan.lundin_kleberg@psyk.uu.se.

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
|November 24, 2018
PubMed

Insights

Infants with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) siblings showed no overall differences in visual attention. However, sex-specific attention to the mouth was observed in male and female ASD siblings.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Neurodevelopmental Disorders
  • Autism Spectrum Disorder Research

Background:

  • Early social attention is crucial for development.
  • Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is characterized by social interaction deficits.
  • Understanding early attention patterns in siblings of children with ASD (ASD-sibs) can offer insights into risk factors.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate visual attention to emotional faces in 10-month-old ASD-sibs compared to controls.
  • To examine potential sex differences in early visual attention patterns within this high-risk group.

Main Methods:

  • Study included 70 infant siblings of children with ASD and 29 control siblings.
  • Visual attention to static emotional facial stimuli was assessed using eye-tracking.
  • Gaze behavior, particularly to the mouth region, was analyzed.

Main Results:

  • No overall atypical gaze behavior was found when analyzing all ASD-sibs together.
  • A significant sex difference emerged: male ASD-sibs showed increased mouth attention across emotions compared to controls and female ASD-sibs.
  • Female ASD-sibs exhibited decreased attention to the mouth compared to female controls.

Conclusions:

  • Early emerging atypical social attention in ASD-sibs may be sex-specific.
  • Findings highlight the importance of considering sex as a biological variable in ASD research.
  • Sex-specific attention patterns may represent an early indicator of neurodevelopmental differences in ASD.

Keywords:
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)Broader autism phenotypeEmotionEye trackingFace processingHigh-risk infants

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