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A single-session behavioral protocol for successful event-related potential recording in children with
Maggie W Guy1, Conner J Black2, Abigail L Hogan2
1Department of Psychology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, 60660, USA.
Insights
A new protocol successfully collected event-related potentials (ERPs) from children with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), including autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and fragile X syndrome (FXS). This method enhances inclusion in neuroscience research by accommodating diverse participant needs.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
Background:
- Event-related potentials (ERPs) are valuable for studying neural responses in children with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs).
- Previous research often excluded children with low IQ, anxiety, or sensory processing difficulties, limiting sample diversity.
- Heterogeneous samples, including children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and fragile X syndrome (FXS), present unique challenges for data collection.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and evaluate a behavioral support protocol for collecting high-quality ERP data in a single session from children with NDDs.
- To assess the feasibility of this protocol across diverse NDD populations, specifically ASD and FXS.
- To identify clinical and behavioral factors associated with successful ERP data collection in these groups.
Main Methods:
- Development of a specialized behavioral support protocol for single-session ERP data acquisition.
- Application of the protocol to collect ERP data from children with ASD, FXS, and typical development (TD).
- Analysis of clinical-behavioral characteristics correlating with the number of valid ERP trials completed.
Main Results:
- Successful ERP data collection was achieved in a single session for participants with ASD, FXS, and TD.
- Higher success rates were observed in children with ASD and TD compared to those with FXS.
- Specific factors like age, nonverbal mental age, and language skills influenced data quality in ASD, while language, autism severity, anxiety, and sensory issues were key in FXS.
Conclusions:
- A single-session ERP data collection protocol is feasible for children with NDDs, but requires tailored approaches.
- The protocol facilitates the inclusion of diverse and representative samples in neuroscience research.
- This work highlights the need for individualized strategies in ERP research involving children with NDDs.
Abstract:
Event-related potentials (ERPs) are an ideal tool for measuring neural responses in a wide range of participants, including children diagnosed with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). However, due to perceived barriers regarding participant compliance, much of this work has excluded children with low IQ and/or reduced adaptive functioning, significant anxiety symptoms, and/or sensory processing difficulties, including heterogeneous samples of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and children with fragile X syndrome (FXS). We have developed a behavioral support protocol designed to obtain high-quality ERP data from children in a single session. Using this approach, ERP data were successfully collected from participants with ASD, FXS, and typical development (TD). Higher success rates were observed for children with ASD and TD than children with FXS. Unique clinical-behavioral characteristics were associated with successful data collection across these groups. Higher chronological age, nonverbal mental age, and receptive language skills were associated with a greater number of valid trials completed in children with ASD. In contrast, higher language ability, lower autism severity, increased anxiety, and increased sensory hyperresponsivity were associated with a greater number of valid trials completed in children with FXS. This work indicates that a "one-size-fits-all" approach cannot be taken to ERP research on children with NDDs, but that a single-session paradigm is feasible and is intended to promote increased representation of children with NDDs in neuroscience research through development of ERP methods that support inclusion of diverse and representative samples.
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