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Do Faces Capture the Attention of Individuals with Williams Syndrome or Autism? Evidence from Tracking Eye Movements

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Abstract

The neuro-developmental disorders of Williams syndrome (WS) and autism can reveal key components of social cognition. Eye-tracking techniques were applied in two tasks exploring attention to pictures containing faces. Images were (i) scrambled pictures containing faces or (ii) pictures of scenes with embedded faces. Compared to individuals who were developing typically, participants with WS and autism showed atypicalities of gaze behaviour. Individuals with WS showed prolonged face gaze across tasks, relating to the typical WS social phenotype. Participants with autism exhibited reduced face gaze, linking to a lack of interest in socially relevant information. The findings are interpreted in terms of wider issues regarding socio-cognition and attention mechanisms.

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Notes

  1. Note that no participants received a negative FISH test. When the two participants who were diagnosed phenotypically, but not genetically, were removed from the analysis there was no change in the reported results pattern.

  2. It is not ideal to remove these participants from the analysis; however, taking an alternative approach and inserting the maximum time allowed to view each image (5000msec) for each trial would skew the data and exaggerate group differences reported here, whilst rendering the interpretation less meaningful.

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Acknowledgments

The research presented in this paper was supported by funding from the Economic and Social Research Council (R000222030) to PJBH and DMR. We are grateful to all the individuals who participated in the research and to the WSF for their continued support

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Psychology, Newcastle University, Ridley Building 1, Framlington Place, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK

    Deborah M. Riby

  2. Department of Psychology, Stirling University, Stirling, Scotland, UK

    Peter J. B. Hancock

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  2. Peter J. B. Hancock
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Correspondence to Deborah M. Riby.

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Riby, D.M., Hancock, P.J.B. Do Faces Capture the Attention of Individuals with Williams Syndrome or Autism? Evidence from Tracking Eye Movements. J Autism Dev Disord 39, 421–431 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-008-0641-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-008-0641-z

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