Slow segmentation of faces in Autism Spectrum Disorder

NEUROPSYCHOLOGIA

卷:127

Article

van den Boomen, C.^1,2  Fahrenfort, J. J.³  Snijders, T. M.^4,5,6  Kemner, C.^1,2,7 

[1] Helmholtz Inst, Dept Expt Psychol, NL-3584 CS Utrecht, Netherlands

[2] Univ Utrecht, Dept Dev Psychol, NL-3584 CS Utrecht, Netherlands

[3] Vrije Univ Amsterdam, Dept Expt & Appl Psychol, NL-1081 BT Amsterdam, Netherlands

[4] Max Planck Inst Psycholinguist, NL-6500 AH Nijmegen, Netherlands

[5] Radboud Univ Nijmegen, Donders Inst Brain Cognit & Behav, NL-6525 EN Nijmegen, Netherlands

[6] Radboud Univ Nijmegen, Donders Ctr Cognit Neuroimaging, NL-6525 EN Nijmegen, Netherlands

[7] Univ Med Ctr, Rudolf Magnus Inst Neurosci, Dept Child & Adolescent Psychiat, NL-3584 CX Utrecht, Netherlands

关键词: ASD;    EEG;    Face;    Segregation;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2019.02.005

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

Atypical visual segmentation, affecting object perception, might contribute to face processing problems in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The current study investigated impairments in visual segmentation of faces in ASD. Thirty participants (ASD: 16; Control: 14) viewed texture-defined faces, houses, and homogeneous images, while electroencephalographic and behavioral responses were recorded. The ASD group showed slower face segmentation related brain activity and longer segmentation reaction times than the control group, but no difference in house-segmentation related activity or behavioral performance. Furthermore, individual differences in face-segmentation but not house-segmentation correlated with score on the Autism Quotient. Segmentation is thus selectively impaired for faces in ASD, and relates to the degree of ASD traits. Face segmentation relates to recurrent connectivity from the fusiform face area (FFA) to the visual cortex. These findings thus suggest that atypical connectivity from the FFA might contribute to delayed face processing in ASD.

【 授权许可】

Free