Visual Exploration of Dynamic or Static Joint Attention Bids in Children With Autism Syndrome Disorder

Frontiers in Psychology

article

Federica Cilia¹  Alexandre Aubry²  Barbara Le Driant¹  Beatrice Bourdin¹  Luc Vandromme¹ 

[1] EA7273 Centre de Recherche en Psychologie Cognition, Université de Picardie Jules Verne;Laboratoire Lorrain de Psychologie et de Neurosciences de la Dynamique des Comportements (2LPN), Institut National Supérieur du Professorat et de l'Éducation, Université de Lorraine

关键词: stimuli;    joint attention;    autism spectrum disorder;    eye-tracking;    areas of interest (AOI);   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02187

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Eye-tracking studies have revealed a specific visual exploration style characterizing individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of stimulus type (static vs. dynamic) on visual exploration in children with ASD. Twenty-eight children with ASD, 28 children matched for developmental communication age, and 28 children matched for chronological age watched a video and a series of photos involving the same joint attention scene. For each stimulus, areas of interest (AOI) were determined based on Voronoi diagrams, which were defined around participants' fixation densities, defined by the mean shift algorithm. To analyze the eye-tracking data on visual exploration, we used a method for creating AOI a posteriori , based on participants' actual fixations. The results showed the value of both kinds of stimuli. The photos allowed for the identification of more precise AOI and showed similarities in exploration between ASD and typical children. On the other hand, video revealed that, among ASD children only, there are few differences in the way they look at the target depending on the deictic cue used. This raises questions regarding their understanding of a joint attention bid recorded on a video. Finally, whatever the stimulus, pointing seems to be the most important element for children looking at the target.

【 授权许可】

CC BY