Social Orienting in Children with ASD

Background:  Children with ASD exhibit impairments in joint attention (e.g. Dawson et al., 2004; Mundy et al., 1986; Toth et al., 2006). Joint attention is thought to contribute to the development of language skills and social proficiency in children (e.g. Carpenter et al., 1998; Sigman & Ruskin, 1999) and can also help to distinguish young children with ASD from those without ASD (e.g. Dawson et al., 2004). Identifying precursors to joint attention impairments may suggest novel targets for intervention. In the Orient Task (Dawson et al., 2004), 3- to 4-year-old children with ASD oriented less than controls to both social and non-social stimuli, with a greater difference found for social stimuli. Children’s social orienting behavior was positively related to their joint attention skills.

Objectives:  In Experiment 1, we used a similar task as Dawson et al. (2004) to examine social and non-social orienting in a younger cohort. In Experiment 2, we removed the underlying social component of the original task. In the original Orient Task, all orienting stimuli were delivered by an experimenter, which adds a social component to both the social and non-social stimuli. To examine the effects of removing this social component, we delivered all stimuli through speakers.

Methods:  Participants in Experiment 1 were 18- to 30-month-old toddlers with ASD, developmental delay (DD), or typical development (TD). Diagnosis of ASD was based on the ADOS, DSM-IV criteria, the ADI-T, and expert clinical judgment. Social and non-social prompts were delivered by an experimenter, while the child played with a toy. During the task, the experimenter also provided bids for joint attention (gaze or point). Participants in Experiment 2 were 2- to 4-year-old children with ASD or TD. All orienting cues were delivered from wall-mounted speakers. Head and/or eye turns toward the location of the stimuli were counted as orienting.

Results: In Experiment 1, toddlers with ASD were significantly less likely to orient to social and non-social cues than toddlers with TD or DD. This difference was greater for social cues, replicating Dawson et al (2004). Toddlers with ASD were also less likely to respond to joint attention bids; social orienting was correlated with joint attention in children with ASD and TD. Data collection is ongoing for Experiment 2. Preliminary results suggest that children with TD orient to the stimuli at a comparable rate to previous findings. Additional analyses will compare rates of orienting in children with ASD to TD children.

Conclusions: Social and non-social orienting deficits were apparent in 18- to 30-month-old toddlers with ASD. Social orienting behavior was related to joint attention, suggesting that orienting deficits may contribute to impaired joint attention skills in autism. We also aimed to strengthen our methodology by eliminating all social elements to the non-social stimuli. Preliminary data suggest that method of delivery of social and non-social stimuli does not alter rates of orienting in TD children.