Face Perception and Learning in Autism Spectrum Disorders

Abstract

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is characterized by impairment in social communication and restricted and repetitive interests (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). While not included in the diagnostic characterization, aspects of face processing and learning have shown disruptions at all stages of development in ASD, although the exact nature and extent of the impairment varies by age and level of functioning of the ASD sample as well as by task demands. In this review, we examine the nature of face attention, perception, and learning in individuals with ASD focusing on 3 broad age ranges (early development, middle childhood, and adolescence/adulthood). We propose that early delays in basic face processing contribute to the atypical trajectory of social communicative skills in individuals with ASD and contribute to poor social learning throughout development. Face learning is a life-long necessity, as the social world of individual only broadens with age, and thus addressing both the source of the impairment in ASD as well as the trajectory of ability throughout the lifespan, through targeted treatments, may serve to positively impact the lives of individuals who struggle with social understanding and information.

Neurophysiological correlates of holistic face processing in adolescents with and without autism spectrum disorder

“…It is also possible that our directions provided a strategy that helped to “normalize” engagement of the face processing circuitry, as suggested by consistent morphology of the component across groups and individuals, with quantitative modulation of latency. Thus, the basic attention and processing mechanisms seem to be available in individuals with ASD and can be manipulated to produce greater responses by directing attention [12, 37]. This is in line with another study that found similar face detection rates after directing the attention to parts of the face [10].…”

“…Individuals with ASD show an enhanced reliance on, or a greater scanning of, unusual face parts (i.e., mouth instead of eyes) [10–12]. The integration of visual information into a meaningful whole may be impeded by processing predominantly first- rather than second-order features leading to a part-based processing style [13–15].…”

The Relationship Between Early Neural Responses to Emotional Faces at Age 3 and Later Autism and Anxiety Symptoms in Adolescents with Autism

“…Although the time course and precise mechanisms underlying face processing are debated (Gauthier et al 2003; Kanwisher 2000; Morton and Johnson 1991), efficient and accurate processing in infancy establishes a foundation upon which more sophisticated social cognition and behavior can develop (Dawson et al 2005; Webb et al, in press). Relative to their typically developing peers, individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) display an altered trajectory of visual attention toward faces from early in life, with reductions in sensitivity to others’ eyes and direction of eye gaze, joint attention, and social smiling (Elsabbagh et al 2012; Jones and Klin 2013; Ozonoff et al 2010).…”

“…In the context of ASD, in contrast, infants attend significantly less to faces and thus receive fewer opportunities and far less face input around which experience-expectant regions can organize (Dawson and Bernier 2007; Webb et al, in press). This altered social environment results in atypical specialization of face processing circuitry (Webb et al, in press) and altered integration of face processing mechanisms with other neural regions important to social communication, undermining a broad array of skills across many domains of social functioning and cognition (Webb et al, in press).…”

“…This altered social environment results in atypical specialization of face processing circuitry (Webb et al, in press) and altered integration of face processing mechanisms with other neural regions important to social communication, undermining a broad array of skills across many domains of social functioning and cognition (Webb et al, in press). Consistent with these models, cross-sectional and short-term longitudinal studies in ASD link face processing with social and communication skills, as well as with ASD severity.…”