ERIC Number: EJ1350342
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2022-Oct
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1362-3613
EISSN: EISSN-1461-7005
Available Date: N/A
Atypically Slow Processing of Faces and Non-Faces in Older Autistic Adults
Bathelt, Joe; Koolschijn, P Cédric M. P.; Geurts, Hilde M.
Autism: The International Journal of Research and Practice, v26 n7 p1737-1751 Oct 2022
Face recognition is a fundamental function that requires holistic processing. Differences in face processing have been consistently identified in autistic children, but it is unknown whether these differences persist across the adult lifespan. Using event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging, we measured holistic face processing with a rapid Mooney faces task in 50 autistic and 49 non-autistic participants (30-74 years). Behavioral tasks included a self-paced version of the same paradigm and a global-local processing task (Navon). Reduced detection rates for faces, but not non-faces, were found in autistic adults, including slower responses on all conditions. Without time constraints, differences in accuracy disappeared between groups, although reaction times in correctly identifying faces remained higher in autistic adults. The functional magnetic resonance imaging results showed lower activation in the left and right superior frontal gyrus in the autism group but no age-related differences. Overall, our findings point toward slower information processing speed rather than a face recognition deficit in autistic adults. This suggests that face-processing differences are not a core feature of autism across the adult lifespan.
Descriptors: Cognitive Processes, Human Body, Task Analysis, Autism Spectrum Disorders, Accuracy, Age Differences, Recognition (Psychology), Brain Hemisphere Functions, Diagnostic Tests, Reaction Time, Comparative Analysis, Adults, Participant Characteristics, Intelligence Tests
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A