Synchrony between sensory and cognitive networks is associated with subclinical variation in autistic traits
Individuals with autistic spectrum disorders exhibit distinct personality traits linked to attentional, social, and affective functions, and those traits are expressed with varying levels of severity in the neurotypical and subclinical population. Variation in autistic traits has been linked to reduced functional and structural connectivity (i.e., underconnectivity, or reduced synchrony) with neural networks modulated by attentional, social, and affective functions. Yet, it remains unclear whether reduced synchrony between these neural networks contributes to autistic traits. To investigate this issue, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to record brain activation while neurotypical participants who varied in their subclinical scores on the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ) viewed alternating blocks of social and nonsocial stimuli (i.e., images of faces and of landscape scenes). We used independent component analysis (ICA) combined with a spatiotemporal regression to quantify synchrony between neural networks. Our results indicated that decreased synchrony between the executive control network (ECN) and a face-scene network (FSN) predicted higher scores on the AQ. This relationship was not explained by individual differences in head motion, preferences for faces, or personality variables related to social cognition. Our findings build on clinical reports by demonstrating that reduced synchrony between distinct neural networks contributes to a range of subclinical autistic traits.
Duke Scholars
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- Experimental Psychology
- 5204 Cognitive and computational psychology
- 5202 Biological psychology
- 3209 Neurosciences
- 1702 Cognitive Sciences
- 1701 Psychology
- 1109 Neurosciences
Citation
Published In
DOI
EISSN
Publication Date
Volume
Issue
Related Subject Headings
- Experimental Psychology
- 5204 Cognitive and computational psychology
- 5202 Biological psychology
- 3209 Neurosciences
- 1702 Cognitive Sciences
- 1701 Psychology
- 1109 Neurosciences