![]() ![]() The only auditory habituation study that focused on adults showed that the ASD group did not differ from the TD group on habituation to a simple tone (e.g., Zahn et al. 2007), with a higher SCL suggesting more physiological arousal. Baseline SCL is considered a proxy for sympathetic nerve activity (Dawson et al. ASD children with high baseline SCL tended to habituate slower and ASD children with low baseline SCL tended to habituate faster. 2008) suggested that it depended on the baseline skin conductance levels (SCL) of participants whether children with ASD habituated slower or faster. A study that both found slower and faster habituation in the ASD group (Schoen et al. 2008), or there was no difference in habituation compared to a typical developing (TD) group (e.g., Chang et al. 2008 Stevens and Gruzelier 1984), or faster (e.g., Schoen et al. Results showed that children with ASD habituated either slower (e.g., Barry and James 1988 James and Barry 1984 Schoen et al. 2016) and all used EDA as measure for habituation. Studies that have examined habituation to auditory stimuli (n = 7) focused mainly on children with ASD (Lydon et al. These studies (n = 5) showed that the amygdala of people with ASD habituated slower to faces compared to TD people (McDiarmid et al. Studies using fMRI to study habituation in people with ASD have, so far, only focused on social stimuli (McDiarmid al. For instance, habituation can be measured by determining the acoustic startle reflex and/or event-related potentials (ERP), by measuring electrodermal activity (EDA), or by means of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI McDiarmid et al. Studies use different measurements and stimuli to examine habituation, which might be a reason why mixed results are found (McDiarmid et al. So far, studies on habituation in people with ASD show mixed results (for reviews see Lydon et al. These habituation difficulties to certain stimuli would lead to a “sensory overload” and hyper-reactions, which is commonly seen in people with ASD. ![]() 2015) is in line with a hypothesis that states that some people with ASD might not or only slowly habituate to sensory stimuli (e.g., Hutt et al. The habituation description of people with ASD (Robertson et al. Habituation is an automatic form of learning in which the body learns not to physiologically respond to stimuli that are familiar, predictable or not relevant anymore (McDiarmid et al. In other words, when a stimulus is repeated multiple times the physiological response to the stimulus slowly decreases or will get extinct. Habituation refers to response distinction after a stimulus has repeatedly been presented (Houtveen et al. This description is similar to what experimental studies on learning call “habituation”. Moreover, some ASD adults expressed that they were not able to get used to certain sensory stimuli as other people without ASD seemed to do (Robertson et al. For instance, certain frequencies can be extremely annoying (e.g., computer fan), loud noises can be painful (e.g., fog horn) and combined sounds such as multiple people talking to each other at once can be overwhelming (e.g., for review see Elwin et al. Studies, clinical observations, and autobiographies show that people with ASD perceive certain sounds as more intense. 2006 Kientz and Dunn 1997 Tomchek and Dunn 2007). One of the most commonly reported sensory sensitivities in ASD is sensitivity to sounds (Baranek et al. In the current paper, we will focus on two possible underlying factors that might play a role in auditory sensitivity in ASD adults, namely habituation and detection thresholds. These findings make it even more crucial to examine possible underlying mechanisms of sensory sensitivity in ASD, as this might provide us with information we need to develop successful treatments for sensory sensitivities that are perceived as problematic by those with ASD. ![]() For instance, sensory sensitivity has been related to social difficulties and the presence of more repetitive behavior (e.g., Deschrijver et al. Besides this relatively high prevalence, sensory sensitivities are recently described to be related to other characteristics of ASD. Even though someone can meet the criteria for an ASD classification without meeting the sensory sensitivity criterion, the reported prevalence of sensory sensitivities in people with ASD is high (60 to 96% for review see Schauder and Benneto 2016). ![]() Nowadays, sensory sensitivities are included as a criterion for the classification of ASD in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5 (DSM-). Sensory sensitivities were already reported in the first descriptions of autism by Leo Kanner (Kanner 1943). It is well known that many people with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis experience sensory sensitivities. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |