Dataset Information

Over-Responsiveness and Greater Variability in Roughness Perception in Autism.

ABSTRACT: Although sensory problems, including tactile hypersensitivity and hyposensitivity (DSM-5) are commonly associated with autism, there is a dearth of systematic and rigorous research in this domain. Here, we report findings from a psychophysical experiment that explored differences in tactile perception between individuals with autism and typically developing control participants, who, using their index finger, rated a series of surfaces on the extent of their roughness. Each surface was rated multiple times and we calculated both the average rating and the variability across trials. Relative to controls, the individuals with autism perceived the surfaces as rougher overall and exhibited greater variability in their ratings across trials. These findings characterize altered tactile perception in autism and suggest that sensory problems in autism may be the product of overly responsive and variable sensory processing.

SUBMITTER: Haigh SM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5201124 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Over-Responsiveness and Greater Variability in Roughness Perception in Autism.

Haigh Sarah M SM Minshew Nancy N Heeger David J DJ Dinstein Ilan I Behrmann Marlene M

Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research 20150525 3

Although sensory problems, including tactile hypersensitivity and hyposensitivity (DSM-5) are commonly associated with autism, there is a dearth of systematic and rigorous research in this domain. Here, we report findings from a psychophysical experiment that explored differences in tactile perception between individuals with autism and typically developing control participants, who, using their index finger, rated a series of surfaces on the extent of their roughness. Each surface was rated mul ...[more]

PMID: 26011310

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Project description:Previous research has shown that odorants consistently evoke associations with textures and their tactile properties like smoothness and roughness. Also, it has been observed that olfaction can modulate tactile perception. We therefore hypothesized that tactile roughness perception may be biased towards the somatosensory connotation of an ambient odorant. We performed two experiments to test this hypothesis. In the first experiment, we investigated the influence of ambient chemosensory stimuli with different roughness connotations on tactile roughness perception. In addition to a pleasant odor with a connotation of softness (PEA), we also included a trigeminal stimulant with a rough, sharp or prickly connotation (Ethanol). We expected that-compared to a No-odorant control condition-tactile texture perception would be biased towards smoothness in the presence of PEA and towards roughness in the presence of Ethanol. However, our results show no significant interaction between chemosensory stimulation and perceived tactile surface roughness. It could be argued that ambient odors may be less effective in stimulating crossmodal associations, since they are by definition extraneous to the tactile stimuli. In an attempt to optimize the conditions for sensory integration, we therefore performed a second experiment in which the olfactory and tactile stimuli were presented in synchrony and in close spatial proximity. In addition, we included pleasant (Lemon) and unpleasant (Indole) odorants that are known to have the ability to affect tactile perception. We expected that tactile stimuli would be perceived as less rough when simultaneously presented with Lemon or PEA (both associated with softness) than when presented with Ethanol or Indole (odors that can be associated with roughness). Again, we found no significant main effect of chemosensory condition on perceived tactile roughness. We discuss the limitations of this study and we present suggestions for future research.

Dataset Information

Over-Responsiveness and Greater Variability in Roughness Perception in Autism.

Publications

Over-Responsiveness and Greater Variability in Roughness Perception in Autism.

Similar Datasets

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