Speaker
Description
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is linked to a hyper-focused visuo-attentional style, impacting higher-order affective and social domains. To disentangle the neurocognitive signatures underlying such attentional anomalies, we recorded EEG in typically developing children (TD; N=20) and in children with ASD (N=19) during a visuo-spatial attentional task where attention was exogenously captured by a large (zoom-out) or small (zoom-in) circular cue in the visual field before the onset of a target at different eccentricities. We performed Multivariate Pattern Analysis (MVPA) of EEG data during both the cue-locked time window, aiming to unveil the spatio-temporal neural dynamics involved in scaling the visuo-attentional focus, and during the target-locked period, aiming to uncover potential repercussions on stimulus processing. Cue-locked MVPA unveiled that, differently from TD individuals, the ASD group showed a temporally sustained and spatially diffuse significant decoding of the cue neural response even after the target onset, suggesting a delayed extinction of cue-related neural activity. Crucially, this delayed extinction of the cue-neural response predicted an aberrant hyperfocusing of visual attention at the behavioural level. Target-locked MVPA results highlighted a hyper-focused attentional profile in ASD individuals, revealing an earlier and stronger processing of target neural responses in zoom-in trials. These findings provide evidence for a temporally and topographically overrepresented processing of visual input in ASD individuals, which can constitute one of the main factors contributing to their unique neurocognitive profile.
| If you're submitting a symposium talk, what's the symposium title? | Psychophysiological Markers in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Current Evidence and Clinical Perspectives |
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| If you're submitting a symposium, or a talk that is part of a symposium, is this a junior symposium? | Yes |
