The relationship between autistic traits, expressiveness, readability and social perceptions.

This study investigated the relationship between autistic traits, expressiveness, readability (both actual and perceived), social favourability, and likability. Sixty participants designated as 'targets' were video recorded in a range of social scenarios and their autistic traits were measured using the Autism Spectrum Quotient. The videos were then shown to 106 new participants designated 'perceivers', who were split into three groups to make judgments related to readability, expressiveness, and social favourability respectively. Mediation analyses revealed that autistic traits negatively impacted both perceived likeability and social favourability, mediated by lowered expressiveness. Autistic traits also directly impacted readability, which was not mediated by expressiveness. The findings show how the level of autistic traits of a target can influence how they are socially perceived by others.

Mindreading beliefs in same- and cross-neurotype interactions.

LAY ABSTRACT: Autistic people are often characterised as having problems with mindreading, which refers to understanding other people's thoughts, beliefs and feelings. However, it has recently been suggested that mindreading difficulties may be a two-way issue between autistic and non-autistic people. This would imply that autistic people may not have difficulty reading the minds of other autistic people, whereas non-autistic people may struggle to read autistic people effectively. In this study, we created a survey in which we asked a relatively large sample of autistic and non-autistic people to rate their own and others' mindreading abilities in relation to autistic and non-autistic others, respectively. Both groups believed that they were better at reading others in their own group than the other group. The autistic respondents reported levels of mindreading skill at least commensurate with the non-autistic respondents when the mind to be read was specified as autistic. Thus, both groups of participants' responses were consistent with the notion that mindreading abilities are relational. Although self-reports are subjective, such beliefs could have important consequences for well-being and intergroup relations.

Dimensions of Self-Reported Driving Difficulty in Autistic and Non-Autistic Adults and their Relationship with Autistic Traits.

A survey asked autistic and non-autistic people about the driving difficulties they experience and their autistic traits. Principle components analysis was used to identify how reported difficulties clustered together in each group, and regression was used to determine which subscales of the Autism Spectrum Quotient predict these factors. For autistic drivers three factors of driving difficulty emerged: a Driving Executive factor, predicted by Attention Switching; a Driving Understanding factor, predicted by Communication; and a Driving Social Interaction factor, predicted by Attention Switching. For non-autistic drivers only one Driving General factor emerged, predicted by Communication. This suggests autistic people may experience at least three distinct domains of difficulty when driving which may relate to their particular profile of autistic features.

Autism and the double empathy problem: Implications for development and mental health.

This article proposes a link between autistic people being misperceived by the neurotypical majority and their being at risk of poor mental health and well-being. We present a transactional account of development in which the misperceptions (and consequent behaviour) of the neurotypical majority influences the perceptions and behaviour of autistic people such that they become increasingly separate and indeed isolated from mainstream society. This jeopardizes their mental health and prevents autistic people from developing to full potential. The situation is not only problematical for the development of autistic people but is also to the detriment of wider society, in so far as autistic people are effectively prevented from contributing fully. This account assumes that some (not necessarily all) autistic people yearn to be included, to be productive and to be useful. It thus directly opposes accounts that view autism as an extreme case of diminished social motivation.

Do Neurotypical People Like or Dislike Autistic People?

Background: This study investigated whether neurotypical individuals' judgments that they dislike a person are more common when viewing autistic individuals than when viewing neurotypical individuals. Methods: Videos of autistic and neurotypical targets were presented to a group of perceivers (neurotypical adults) who were asked whether or not they liked each target and why. Results: It was more common for perceivers to "like" neurotypical than autistic targets. The number of "likes" each target received correlated highly with perceiver ratings of target social favorability. Perceivers cited perceived awkwardness and lack of empathy as being reasons for deciding they disliked targets. Conclusions: The findings shed light on how neurotypical people (mis)perceive autistic people. Such perceptions may act as a barrier to social integration for autistic people. Lay summary: Why was this study done?: Previous research has found that nonautistic people tend to form less positive first impressions of autistic people than they do of other nonautistic people. These studies have tended to present questions such as "How trustworthy is this person?" or "How attractive is this person?" along with ratings scales. However, although it is known that nonautistic people tend to give lower ratings on these scales, we do not know whether this amounts to a dislike for autistic people or just lower levels of liking.What was the purpose of this study?: This study aimed to find out whether nonautistic people are less likely to say they like (and more likely to say they dislike) autistic people than other nonautistic people.What did the researchers do?: The researchers presented videos of autistic and nonautistic people to other nonautistic adults. The people watching the videos were not told that some of the people in the videos were autistic. They were asked to decide whether they liked or disliked the person in each video and to say why they had made their decision by choosing from a range of options.What were the results of the study?: Nonautistic people were more likely to say they disliked the person in the video if they were autistic, even though they did not know the diagnosis. The most common reasons for disliking a person was that they appeared awkward, and that they appeared to lack empathy.What do these findings add to what was already known?: It was already known that nonautistic people tend to rate autistic people less positively on ratings scales. This study suggests that when making judgments-of either liking or disliking-they will sometimes go so far as to say they dislike autistic people.What are potential weaknesses in the study?: All of the people in the video clips were male, while those watching the videos were mainly female. Therefore, we do not know whether the same observations would be made for perceptions of autistic females. The number of participants watching the videos was relatively small: a larger sample would give more reliable findings.How will these findings help autistic adults now or in the future?: The findings add to previous research showing nonautistic people's misperceptions of autistic people could be a barrier to social integration for autistic people. They highlight the need for interventions at the societal level aimed at reducing misunderstanding and promoting tolerance.

Immunohistochemical Validation of Rare Tissues and Antigens With Low Frequency of Occurrence: Recommendations From The Anatomic Pathology Patient Interest Association (APPIA).

Laboratories worldwide find it challenging to identify enough tissues and cases for verification and validation studies of low-incidence, rare antigens. These antigens have a low frequency of occurrence in the population, or have little or no expression in normal tissues. Validation studies are essential to assure testing standardization before introducing a new instrument, product, or test into the clinical laboratory. The College of American Pathologists has published comprehensive guidelines for the verification and validation of new immunohistochemical tests introduced into the laboratory menu. Within the guidelines, varied numbers of cases are required for nonpredictive versus predictive markers. However, regarding low-incidence antigens, the laboratory medical director determines the extent of validation required. Recommended practical solutions available to clinical laboratories for low-incidence validation include developing internal resources using the laboratory information system with retrospective and prospective search(s) of archival material and purchase of tissue microarray blocks, slides, or cell lines from external resources. Utilization of homemade multitissue blocks has proved to be extremely valuable in biomarker research and demonstrated great utility in clinical immunohistochemistry laboratories. Participation in External Quality Assessment program(s) may provide insufficient numbers or the ability to calculate concordance rates. However, supplementation with in-house tissues can allow a laboratory to reach the optimal number of cases needed for verification and/or validation schemes. An alternative approach is conducting a thorough literature search and correlating staining patterns of the new test to the expected results. These solutions may be used uniquely or together to assure consistent standardized testing.

University Students' Notion of Autism Spectrum Conditions: A Cross-Cultural Study.

Cultural background might influence knowledge and attitudes regarding autism, influencing willingness to interact. We studied whether beliefs, knowledge, contact, and attitude differed between the UK and Malaysia. With mediation analyses, we studied how these factors influenced willingness to interact. Autism was more often linked to food in the UK, and to upbringing in Malaysia. Knowledge, contact, and acceptance were greater in the UK. When excluding psychology students, Malaysian students were less willing to interact with autistic people. Knowledge and contact appeared to improve acceptance, but acceptance did not mediate the relation between country, beliefs, knowledge, and experience; and willingness to interact. Knowledge and contact regarding autism might improve acceptance in different cultures, but how acceptance could improve interaction is unclear.

Can Cartoons Which Depict Autistic Characters Improve Attitudes Towards Autistic Peers?

This study aimed to assess the efficacy of two cartoons which depict autistic characters in improving attitudes towards autistic peers in two separate studies. Forty-six children participated in study 1 (4-7 years), and 47 children participated in study 2 (8-11 years). Both the conative (behavioural) component of attitudes and knowledge about autism were measured before and after the cartoon interventions. Knowledge of autism increased after watching the cartoons in both studies but attitudes to autism only improved in study 1. Knowledge was shown to correlate with change in some but not all attitude measures. The findings suggest that cartoons can improve attitudes to autism, but this may depend on how information is presented.

Is There a Link Between Autistic People Being Perceived Unfavorably and Having a Mind That Is Difficult to Read?

The link between autistic people having a mind that is difficult to read (by neurotypical participants) and being perceived unfavorably was investigated. Videoed Autistic and neurotypical targets from Sheppard et al. (PLOS ONE 7(11):e49859, 2016) were scored for how readable they were when reacting to a distinctive greeting from the experimenter. These videos were presented to new groups of perceivers (neurotypical adults) who rated neurotypical targets more socially favorably than autistic targets irrespective of whether details of the experimenter's greeting were concealed (Study 1) or disclosed (Study 2). Target readability correlated with ratings of target favorability (r = .58 and r = .63), independent of target diagnosis. Perceivers might rate targets unfavorably because they experience difficulty reading them, though other interpretations of the correlation are also possible.

The effect of lighting conditions and use of headlights on drivers' perception and appraisal of approaching vehicles at junctions.

Use of Daytime Running Lights (DRL) is mandatory in many countries for motorcycles, and in some for cars. However, in developing countries, DRLs may be optional or compliance low. The effect of car or motorcycle headlights and lighting conditions on Malaysian drivers' ability to perceive and judge the safety of pulling out was investigated. Stimuli were photographs depicting either daytime or nighttime taken at a T-junction with approaching vehicles with headlights on or off. Headlights improved drivers' ability to perceive cars and motorcycles in the nighttime photographs but not the daytime photographs, although this could be due to the bright weather in the photographs. Drivers judged it less safe to pull out when approaching motorcycles had headlights on than off, regardless of the lighting conditions, supporting the utility of DRL for motorcycles. Headlights did not affect judgements for cars, questioning the utility of DRL for cars. Practitioner Summary: The effect of headlights and lighting conditions on drivers' ability to perceive and make judgements about the safety of pulling out was investigated. Daytime Running Lights influenced drivers' decision-making about the safety of pulling out in front of motorcycles, illustrating the importance of having automatic headlights equipped.

How accurately can other people infer your thoughts-And does culture matter?

This research investigated how accurately people infer what others are thinking after observing a brief sample of their behaviour and whether culture/similarity is a relevant factor. Target participants (14 British and 14 Mediterraneans) were cued to think about either positive or negative events they had experienced. Subsequently, perceiver participants (16 British and 16 Mediterraneans) watched videos of the targets thinking about these things. Perceivers (both groups) were significantly accurate in judging when targets had been cued to think of something positive versus something negative, indicating notable inferential ability. Additionally, Mediterranean perceivers were better than British perceivers in making such inferences, irrespective of nationality of the targets, something that was statistically accounted for by corresponding group differences in levels of independently measured collectivism. The results point to the need for further research to investigate the possibility that being reared in a collectivist culture fosters ability in interpreting others' behaviour.

Attentional Differences in a Driving Hazard Perception Task in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

The current study explored attentional processing of social and non-social stimuli in ASD within the context of a driving hazard perception task. Participants watched videos of road scenes and detected hazards while their eye movements were recorded. Although individuals with ASD demonstrated relatively good detection of driving hazards, they were slower to orient to hazards. Greater attentional capture in the time preceding the hazards' onset was associated with lower verbal IQ. The findings suggest that individuals with ASD may distribute and direct their attention differently when identifying driving hazards.

The effect of motion and signalling on drivers' ability to predict intentions of other road users.

Failure in making the correct judgment about the intention of an approaching vehicle at a junction could lead to a collision. This paper investigated the impact of dynamic information on drivers' judgments about the intentions of approaching cars and motorcycles, and whether a valid or invalid signal was provided was also manipulated. Participants were presented with videoclips of vehicles approaching a junction which terminated immediately before the vehicle made any manoeuvre, or images of the final frame of each video. They were asked to judge whether or not the vehicle would turn. Drivers were better in judging the manoeuvre of approaching vehicles in dynamic than static stimuli, for both vehicle types. Drivers were better in judging the manoeuvre of cars than motorcycles for videos, but not for photographs. Drivers were also better in judging the manoeuvre of approaching vehicles when a valid signal was provided than an invalid signal, demonstrating the importance of providing a valid signal while driving. However, drivers were still somewhat successful in their judgments in most of the conditions with an invalid signal, suggesting that drivers were able to focus on other cues to intention. Finally, given that dynamic stimuli more closely reflect the demands of real-life driving there may be a need for drivers to adopt a more cautious approach while inferring a motorcyclist's intentions.

The game is afoot: A response to three insightful commentaries.

This is an author response to commentaries on our original article (Wu, Sheppard & Mitchell, 2016). We abstract two main themes from the commentaries, and they are as follows: (1) What kind of clues in target behaviour allow perceivers to infer target EQ? And related with this, by what process do perceivers infer the target's EQ? (2) Do features of the target group naturally lead to a U-shaped function, whereby it is easy for perceivers to identify those at the extremes but not those in the middle of the continuum?

Recognizing Dynamic Faces in Malaysian Chinese Participants.

High performance level in face recognition studies does not seem to be replicable in real-life situations possibly because of the artificial nature of laboratory studies. Recognizing faces in natural social situations may be a more challenging task, as it involves constant examination of dynamic facial motions that may alter facial structure vital to the recognition of unfamiliar faces. Because of the incongruences of recognition performance, the current study developed stimuli that closely represent natural social situations to yield results that more accurately reflect observers' performance in real-life settings. Naturalistic stimuli of African, East Asian, and Western Caucasian actors introducing themselves were presented to investigate Malaysian Chinese participants' recognition sensitivity and looking strategies when performing a face recognition task. When perceiving dynamic facial stimuli, participants fixated most on the nose, followed by the mouth then the eyes. Focusing on the nose may have enabled participants to gain a more holistic view of actors' facial and head movements, which proved to be beneficial in recognizing identities. Participants recognized all three races of faces equally well. The current results, which differed from a previous static face recognition study, may be a more accurate reflection of observers' recognition abilities and looking strategies.

How Easy is it to Read the Minds of People with Autism Spectrum Disorder?

How well can neurotypical adults' interpret mental states in people with ASD? 'Targets' (ASD and neurotypical) reactions to four events were video-recorded then shown to neurotypical participants whose task was to identify which event the target had experienced. In study 1 participants were more successful for neurotypical than ASD targets. In study 2, participants rated ASD targets equally expressive as neurotypical targets for three of the events, while in study 3 participants gave different verbal descriptions of the reactions of ASD and neurotypical targets. It thus seems people with ASD react differently but not less expressively to events. Because neurotypicals are ineffective in interpreting the behaviour of those with ASD, this could contribute to the social difficulties in ASD.

Being Sherlock Holmes: Can we sense empathy from a brief sample of behaviour?

Mentalizing (otherwise known as 'theory of mind') involves a special process that is adapted for predicting and explaining the behaviour of others (targets) based on inferences about targets' beliefs and character. This research investigated how well participants made inferences about an especially apposite aspect of character, empathy. Participants were invited to make inferences of self-rated empathy after watching or listening to an unfamiliar target for a few seconds telling a scripted joke (or answering questions about him/herself or reading aloud a paragraph of promotional material). Across three studies, participants were good at identifying targets with low and high self-rated empathy but not good at identifying those who are average. Such inferences, especially of high self-rated empathy, seemed to be based mainly on clues in the target's behaviour, presented either in a video, a still photograph or in an audio track. However, participants were not as effective in guessing which targets had low or average self-rated empathy from a still photograph showing a neutral pose or from an audio track. We conclude with discussion of the scope and the adaptive value of this inferential ability.

Toward enteral nutrition for the treatment of pediatric Crohn disease in Canada: a workshop to identify barriers and enablers.

The treatment armamentarium in pediatric Crohn disease (CD) is very similar to adult-onset CD with the notable exception of the use of exclusive enteral nutrition (EEN [the administration of a liquid formula diet while excluding normal diet]), which is used more frequently by pediatric gastroenterologists to induce remission. In pediatric CD, EEN is now recommended by the pediatric committee of the European Crohn's and Colitis Organisation and the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition as a first-choice agent to induce remission, with remission rates in pediatric studies consistently >75%. To chart and address enablers and barriers of use of EEN in Canada, a workshop was held in September 2014 in Toronto (Ontario), inviting pediatric gastroenterologists, nurses and dietitians from most Canadian pediatric IBD centres as well as international faculty from the United States and Europe with particular research and clinical expertise in the dietary management of pediatric CD. Workshop participants ranked the exclusivity of enteral nutrition; the health care resources; and cost implications as the top three barriers to its use. Conversely, key enablers mentioned included: standardization and sharing of protocols for use of enteral nutrition; ensuring sufficient dietetic resources; and reducing the cost of EEN to the family (including advocacy for reimbursement by provincial ministries of health and private insurance companies). Herein, the authors report on the discussions during this workshop and list strategies to enhance the use of EEN as a treatment option in the treatment of pediatric CD in Canada.