Work

Higher autism trait severity in children associates with diminished integration of angry prosody in semantic processing

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: Background: Previous studies examined group differences of individuals with and without autism. This study investigated individual differences in automatic integration of emotional prosody during semantic processing at the behavioral and neural levels among children using a continuous measure of autism trait severity (ATS).Method: Event-related potentials (ERPs) of 46 children, 21 of them diagnosed with ASD, were measured. Children determined the semantic valence of spoken words, and ignored the emotional prosody, which was either congruent or incongruent with the semantic valence.Results: The difference between congruent and incongruent conditions (congruency effect) indicates automatic integration of emotional prosody in semantic processing. Independent of congruency, higher ATS and Intelligence Quotient (IQ) were associated with faster reaction times (RTs), while higher IQ and language ability were associated with higher accuracy. In ERPs, higher ATS and higher IQ were associated with smaller congruency effects on P2 amplitudes for angry (but not happy) prosodic stimuli.Conclusion: The findings suggest a stronger tendency to ignore angry prosodies among children with higher ATS. This has implications for educational practices and parent counseling regarding communication with children with high ATS.

Source: Research in Autism

DOI: 10.1016/j.rasd.2023.102325

Authors: Gilbert Ka-Bo Lau, Ming Lui, Andrea Hildebrandt, Werner Sommer, Changsong Zhou

Institutions: Hong Kong Baptist University, University of Roehampton, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin

Language: English

Topic: Autism Spectrum Disorder Research

Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,410