Social and joint attention during shared book reading in young autistic children: a potential marker for social development

IF 6.5 1区医学 Q1 PSYCHIATRY

Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry Pub Date : 2024-04-24 DOI:10.1111/jcpp.13993

Zahava Ambarchi, Kelsie A. Boulton, Rinku Thapa, Joanne Arciuli, Marilena M. DeMayo, Ian B. Hickie, Emma E. Thomas, Adam J. Guastella

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Abstract

Background

Atypical patterns of social engagement and joint attention behaviors are diagnostic criteria for people with autism spectrum disorder. Experimental tasks using eye-tracking methodologies have, however, shown inconsistent results. The development of tasks with greater ecological validity and relevance for developmentally appropriate social milestones has been identified as important for the field.

Methods

We developed a novel, dynamic eye-tracking task emulating a shared book reading (SBR) scenario. Four SBR videos of an adult reader engaging with the viewer while reading a children's picture book and including sequenced bids for joint attention were developed. Participants included 90 children (N = 56 autistic children, N = 34 neurotypical children; aged 3–12). Social attention was also measured in a live free play task between participants and an experimenter.

Results

Compared to neurotypical children, autistic children displayed reduced attention to socially salient stimuli including the reader's face and picture book across SBR videos and during joint attention bids specifically. In contrast, they showed increased attention to nonsalient background stimuli compared to their neurotypical peers. These attention patterns in autistic children were associated with reduced verbal and nonverbal cognitive skills and increased symptoms associated with autism. Interestingly, positive correlations in the frequency of eye gaze between SBR and free play suggested a potential predictive value for social attention in live social interactions.

Conclusions

Findings highlight the utility of SBR eye-tracking tasks in understanding underlying divergences in social engagement and joint attention between autistic and neurotypical children. This commonly practiced early childhood activity may provide insights into the relationship between social engagement and learning to reveal how such attentional patterns might influence broader developmental and educational outcomes.

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自闭症幼儿共同阅读图书时的社交注意力和共同注意力：社交发展的潜在标志

背景自闭症谱系障碍患者的诊断标准是不典型的社会参与模式和共同注意行为。然而，使用眼动追踪方法进行的实验任务却显示出不一致的结果。我们开发了一种新颖、动态的眼动跟踪任务，模拟共同阅读图书（SBR）的情景。我们制作了四段 SBR 视频，视频中成人读者在阅读儿童图画书时与观众互动，并按顺序请求共同注意。参与者包括 90 名儿童（自闭症儿童 56 名，神经畸形儿童 34 名；年龄 3-12 岁）。结果与神经正常儿童相比，自闭症儿童在观看 SBR 视频时，特别是在联合注意竞标时，对社会突出刺激（包括读者的脸和图画书）的注意力有所下降。相反，与神经畸形儿童相比，自闭症儿童对非显著性背景刺激的注意力却有所增加。自闭症儿童的这些注意力模式与语言和非语言认知技能的下降以及自闭症相关症状的增加有关。有趣的是，SBR 和自由游戏之间的目光注视频率呈正相关，这表明在现场社交互动中社会注意力具有潜在的预测价值。结论研究结果突出表明，SBR 眼动追踪任务有助于了解自闭症儿童和神经症儿童在社会参与和共同注意力方面的潜在差异。这种常见的儿童早期活动可以让我们深入了解社会参与和学习之间的关系，从而揭示这种注意力模式可能会如何影响更广泛的发展和教育成果。

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来源期刊

Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 医学-精神病学

CiteScore

13.80

自引率

5.30%

发文量

169

审稿时长

1 months

期刊介绍： The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry (JCPP) is a highly regarded international publication that focuses on the fields of child and adolescent psychology and psychiatry. It is recognized for publishing top-tier, clinically relevant research across various disciplines related to these areas. JCPP has a broad global readership and covers a diverse range of topics, including: Epidemiology: Studies on the prevalence and distribution of mental health issues in children and adolescents. Diagnosis: Research on the identification and classification of childhood disorders. Treatments: Psychotherapeutic and psychopharmacological interventions for child and adolescent mental health. Behavior and Cognition: Studies on the behavioral and cognitive aspects of childhood disorders. Neuroscience and Neurobiology: Research on the neural and biological underpinnings of child mental health. Genetics: Genetic factors contributing to the development of childhood disorders. JCPP serves as a platform for integrating empirical research, clinical studies, and high-quality reviews from diverse perspectives, theoretical viewpoints, and disciplines. This interdisciplinary approach is a key feature of the journal, as it fosters a comprehensive understanding of child and adolescent mental health. The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry is published 12 times a year and is affiliated with the Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health (ACAMH), which supports the journal's mission to advance knowledge and practice in the field of child and adolescent mental health.