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Mutual gaze and later social attention development in infants at typical and elevated familial likelihood for ASD and/or ADHD

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Early indicators of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) include reduced attention to social cues such as faces, which may be reflected in face-to-face social interactions. Similarly, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may impact social interactions through variations in sustaining attention on social partners. Despite this, no studies have compared early social attention in naturalistic face-to-face interactions in infants with typical (TL) and elevated (EL) familial likelihood for developing ASD and/or ADHD. Moreover, while alterations in early social attention are thought to be linked to later social skills in ASD, information on how these early behaviours relate to outcomes in EL-ADHD infants is limited.In our study, we contrasted mutual gaze engagement in infants with TL and EL for developing ASD and/or ADHD during parent-infant interactions at 4-7 months of age. We also examined the relationship between mutual gaze at 4-7 months of age and face-orienting responses at 8-12 months, as well as its association with later ASD diagnosis. Our findings indicate that infants at EL for ASD and/or ADHD exhibit greater mutual gaze during free-play interactions with their parents compared to TL infants. Furthermore, greater mutual gaze at 4-7 months was associated with decreased face-orienting responses at 8-12 months in EL-ASD infants, particularly those later diagnosed with ASD. This association was not observed in TL infants or those at EL for ADHD.These results suggest that variations in early social experiences, such as mutual gaze engagement, could be an early indicator or antecedent of social orienting difficulties in individuals later diagnosed with ASD, offering insights into early identification and intervention strategies for this population.

Source: Early Human Development

DOI: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2025.106398