Exploring the impact of autistic traits and anxiety on visual attentional response to angry faces in adults with high autistic traits: An eye-movement study
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Abstract
This study investigated the impact of autistic traits and anxiety on the visual attentional response to angry faces among individuals with varying levels of autistic traits in the general population. Two experiments were conducted. In Experiment 1, eye-tracking methodology was used to compare 26 participants with high autistic traits to 26 individuals with low autistic traits. The latency of the first fixation on images of angry faces, neutral faces, and objects during a free viewing task was measured. Anxiety levels were assessed using the Self-rating Anxiety Scale. Experiment 2 utilized an overlap task to examine attentional response patterns toward angry faces in individuals with high and low autistic traits. The findings revealed that participants with high autistic traits displayed a longer latency to first fixation on angry faces during the free-viewing task compared to those with low autistic traits. However, no significant differences were observed for neutral faces and objects. In the overlap task, the group with high autistic traits demonstrated a significantly prolonged latency to first fixation on angry faces in peripheral positions when the central stimulus was a neutral face and the peripheral stimulus was an angry face, relative to the group with low autistic traits. Importantly, when taking anxiety traits into account as a covariate in both experiments, the previously observed group effects no longer remained significant. These results were discussed within the frameworks of social motivation theory and the autism continuum hypothesis.
期刊介绍：
Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders (RASD) publishes high quality empirical articles and reviews that contribute to a better understanding of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) at all levels of description; genetic, neurobiological, cognitive, and behavioral. The primary focus of the journal is to bridge the gap between basic research at these levels, and the practical questions and difficulties that are faced by individuals with ASD and their families, as well as carers, educators and clinicians. In addition, the journal encourages submissions on topics that remain under-researched in the field. We know shamefully little about the causes and consequences of the significant language and general intellectual impairments that characterize half of all individuals with ASD. We know even less about the challenges that women with ASD face and less still about the needs of individuals with ASD as they grow older. Medical and psychological co-morbidities and the complications they bring with them for the diagnosis and treatment of ASD represents another area of relatively little research. At RASD we are committed to promoting high-quality and rigorous research on all of these issues, and we look forward to receiving many excellent submissions.
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