The sensitivity and specificity of a diagnostic test of sequence-space synesthesia

Rothen, Nicolas; Jünemann, Kristin; Mealor, Andy D.; Burckhardt, Vera; Ward, Jamie

doi:10.3758/s13428-015-0656-2

Cited by 13 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…SSS was verified by means of an online screening questionnaire, a consistency test and a drawing test [57]. The consistency test was a spatial computer task [58], in which participants indicated the location of their synaesthetic experiences [57]. Participants' drawings of days, months and numbers allowed verification of SSS by visual inspection of the drawings' characteristics.…”

Section: Methods Study 2: Sequence-space Synaesthesia Cohort (A) Partmentioning

confidence: 99%

Autistic traits in synaesthesia: atypical sensory sensitivity and enhanced perception of details

Leeuwen

Petersen

Burghoorn

et al. 2019

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

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In synaesthetes, specific sensory stimuli (e.g. black letters) elicit additional experiences (e.g. colour). Synaesthesia is highly prevalent among individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but the mechanisms of this co-occurrence are not clear. We hypothesized autism and synaesthesia share atypical sensory sensitivity and perception. We assessed autistic traits, sensory sensitivity and visual perception in two synaesthete populations. In Study 1, synaesthetes ( N = 79, of different types) scored higher than non-synaesthetes ( N = 76) on the Attention-to-detail and Social skills subscales of the autism spectrum quotient indexing autistic traits, and on the Glasgow Sensory Questionnaire indexing sensory hypersensitivity and hyposensitivity which frequently occur in autism. Synaesthetes performed two local/global visual tasks because individuals with autism typically show a bias towards detail processing. In synaesthetes, elevated motion coherence thresholds (MCTs) suggested reduced global motion perception, and higher accuracy on an embedded figures task suggested enhanced local perception. In Study 2, sequence-space synaesthetes ( N = 18) completed the same tasks. Questionnaire and embedded figures results qualitatively resembled Study 1 results, but no significant group differences with non-synaesthetes ( N = 20) were obtained. Unexpectedly, sequence-space synaesthetes had reduced MCTs. Altogether, our studies suggest atypical sensory sensitivity and a bias towards detail processing are shared features of synaesthesia and ASD. This article is part of the discussion meeting issue ‘Bridging senses: novel insights from synaesthesia’.

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Section: Methods Study 2: Sequence-space Synaesthesia Cohort (A) Partmentioning

confidence: 99%

Autistic traits in synaesthesia: atypical sensory sensitivity and enhanced perception of details

Leeuwen

Petersen

Burghoorn

et al. 2019

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

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“…The drawings were categorized by an independent rater regarding consistency and complexity to confirm synaesthesia (cf. Rothen, Jünemann, Mealor, Burckhardt, & Ward, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Creativity and involvement in art in different types of synaesthesia

Lunke

Meier

2018

British J of Psychology

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The aim of the present study was to test the relationship between different types of synaesthesia and their involvement in art, creative, and visual abilities. We tested 20 grapheme‐colour, 18 sound‐colour, 19 grapheme‐colour‐and‐sound‐colour, 20 sequence‐space synaesthetes, and the same number of controls matched by age, gender, and education. We assessed the number of artistic professions, involvement in art, and the performance in psychometric tests of divergent and convergent creativity, as well as visual and visuo‐spatial abilities. Results show a higher prevalence of artists among synaesthetes, especially sound‐colour synaesthetes. Sound‐colour synaesthetes also showed a higher involvement in artistic activities overall while sequence‐space synaesthetes showed higher involvement in visual art. Only grapheme‐colour‐and‐sound‐colour synaesthetes showed significantly higher divergent creativity compared to matched controls. Additionally, overall, synaesthetes scored higher in visuo‐spatial abilities (i.e., mental rotation). For synaesthetes and controls, visuo‐spatial abilities correlated with divergent creativity. We discuss that synaesthetes’ higher involvement in art is not necessarily reflected in their basic creative abilities.

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“…where the unusual experience is colour), there remains no commonly agreed diagnostic measure for SSS. In this set of studies, we take a significant step towards resolving this debate by further developing and validating a recently devised diagnostic test (Rothen, Jünemann, Mealor, Burckhardt, & Ward, 2016), and using it to assess the prevalence and cognitive profile of the (probable) synaesthetic group that pass it. The Victorian polymath, and cousin of Charles Darwin, Francis Galton initially became interested in SSS because of its possible link to the familial inheritance of mental ability (Burbridge, 1994).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…those who visualise their form in peripersonal space, Smilek et al, 2007). Rothen et al (2016) attempted to address these shortcomings. They asked people with SSS to reproduce their spatial form on a 2D computer screen by making mouse clicks to indicate where each item in the sequence should be placed spatially and repeating this three times (people with 3D representations are generally able to represent them in 2D).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the two studies below we use the diagnostic consistency test of Rothen et al, (2016) to determine the prevalence of SSS in individuals who were not recruited on the basis of having synaesthesia and who were not aware that the testing was about the condition. We also develop a novel questionnaire, to replace self-referral as the subjective measure.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The prevalence and cognitive profile of sequence-space synaesthesia

Ward

Ipser

Phanvanova

et al. 2018

Consciousness and Cognition

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People with sequence-space synaesthesia visualize sequential concepts such as numbers and time as an ordered pattern extending through space. Unlike other types of synaesthesia, there is no generally agreed objective method for diagnosing this variant or separating it from potentially related aspects of cognition. We use a recently-developed spatial consistency test together with a novel questionnaire on naïve samples and estimate the prevalence of sequence-space synaesthesia to be around 8.1% (Study 1) to 12.8% (Study 2). We validate our test by showing that participants classified as having sequence-space synaesthesia perform differently on lab-based tasks. They show a spatial Stroop-like interference response, they show enhanced detection of low visibility Gabor stimuli, they report more use of visual imagery, and improved memory for certain types of public events. We suggest that sequence-space synaesthesia develops from a particular neurocognitive profile linked both to greater visual imagery and enhanced visual perception.

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The sensitivity and specificity of a diagnostic test of sequence-space synesthesia

Cited by 13 publications

References 16 publications

Autistic traits in synaesthesia: atypical sensory sensitivity and enhanced perception of details

Autistic traits in synaesthesia: atypical sensory sensitivity and enhanced perception of details

Creativity and involvement in art in different types of synaesthesia

The prevalence and cognitive profile of sequence-space synaesthesia

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