The overarching goal of this project is to study social engagement in infants with autism spectrum disorders(ASD) by means of eye-tracking technology and innovative quantification of visual attention during viewing ofnaturalistic social situations. We will measure (1) visual fixation time during viewing of adults engaged ininfant-directed approaches, and (2) temporally-sensitive visual scanning patterns during viewing of infantsengaged in peer play. A cohort of 200 12- to 24-month-old infants will be shared with Projects 2 and 3,consisting of infants with ASD (N=70), non-autistic developmental delays (DD) (N=70) and typicaldevelopment (TD) (N=60). The ASD and DD cohorts will be re-evaluated at age 36 to 48 months forconfirmatory diagnosis and measures of developmental outcome; the TD group will be screened for falsenegatives at that time. This work builds on our findings of anomalous visual fixation patterns to dynamicsocial stimuli in adolescents (R01 HD04217) and in 24- to 36-month-olds (U54 MH66494, Yale STAART)with ASD. In both cases, summaries of visual fixation on regions of interest (eyes, mouth, body, object) werestrong predictors of concurrent, standardized measures of social disability. In this project, we propose todownward extend this research to the second year of life, which is currently the period of earliest detectabilityof ASD. We also propose to employ novel group measures of moment-by-moment visual scanning behaviordeveloped by our group, which are particularly sensitive to time-delimited social and physical cues occurringnaturallly in infants' surrounding environment.The project builds thematically and methodologically on various core goals of the Yale ACEapplication: (1) the study of early-emerging mechanisms of socialization that are potential mediatingphenotypes of social and communicative functioning; (2) the assessment of their predictive power relative todevelopmental and diagnostic outcome; and (3) the development of performance-based screening protocolsfor infants at risk for ASD. More broadly, we will explore the role of these mechanisms on heterogeneity ofsyndrome manifestation. This project addresses several key action items of the NIH Interagency AutismCoordinating Committee, emphasizing developmental markers and screening in infants, andneurodevelopmental processes.
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| Moriuchi, Jennifer M; Klin, Ami; Jones, Warren (2017) Mechanisms of Diminished Attention to Eyes in Autism. Am J Psychiatry 174:26-35 |
| Prince, Emily Barbara; Kim, Elizabeth S; Wall, Carla Anne et al. (2017) The relationship between autism symptoms and arousal level in toddlers with autism spectrum disorder, as measured by electrodermal activity. Autism 21:504-508 |
| Macari, Suzanne L; Koller, Judah; Campbell, Daniel J et al. (2017) Temperamental markers in toddlers with autism spectrum disorder. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 58:819-828 |
| Szatmari, Peter; Chawarska, Katarzyna; Dawson, Geraldine et al. (2016) Prospective Longitudinal Studies of Infant Siblings of Children With Autism: Lessons Learned and Future Directions. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 55:179-87 |
| Shic, Frederick (2016) Eye Tracking as a Behavioral Biomarker for Psychiatric Conditions: The Road Ahead. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 55:267-8 |
| Chawarska, Katarzyna; Ye, Saier; Shic, Frederick et al. (2016) Multilevel Differences in Spontaneous Social Attention in Toddlers With Autism Spectrum Disorder. Child Dev 87:543-57 |
| Chawarska, Katarzyna; Chang, Joseph; Campbell, Daniel (2015) In Reply. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 54:958-9 |
| Klintwall, Lars; Macari, Suzanne; Eikeseth, Svein et al. (2015) Interest level in 2-year-olds with autism spectrum disorder predicts rate of verbal, nonverbal, and adaptive skill acquisition. Autism 19:925-33 |
| Campbell, Daniel J; Shic, Frederick; Macari, Suzanne et al. (2014) Gaze response to dyadic bids at 2 years related to outcomes at 3 years in autism spectrum disorders: a subtyping analysis. J Autism Dev Disord 44:431-42 |
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