Preserved but Un-Sustained Responses to Bids for Dyadic Engagement in School-Age Children with Autism.
Carla A Wall, Caitlin Hudac, Kelsey Dommer and 11 others
PMID 39754656WHAT IT FOUND
Autistic children looked at faces less than peers overall, but responded to direct bids for attention just as strongly.
They did, however, drop attention faster when the bid ended and conversation resumed.
Key findings
01Autistic children spent significantly less time looking at speaker faces across all conditions compared to neurotypical children.
02Both groups increased attention equally when an actor broke the fourth wall to speak directly to the viewer.
03Autistic children showed a sharper decline in attention to faces when the direct bid ended and the actors resumed conversation with each other.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study only measured attention to faces, ignoring where else the children looked, such as hands or objects. Participants came from three different sites with varying assessment batteries, which may introduce inconsistency. The study is cross-sectional, so it cannot show how these attention patterns change over time or with intervention.
Declared interests
One author is a consultant for pharmaceutical companies. Two authors are employees of Cogstate Ltd, and one is an employee of Apple Inc.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the overall reduction in face looking as a lack of social interest. The data shows autistic children responded to direct bids just as strongly as peers, suggesting the deficit is in sustaining attention during complex conversational flow, not in recognizing or responding to engagement.