ERIC Number: EJ756642
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2007
Pages: 15
Abstractor: Author
Reference Count: 37
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0009-3920
Do the Eyes Have It? Inferring Mental States from Animated Faces in Autism
Back, Elisa; Ropar, Danielle; Mitchell, Peter
Child Development, v78 n2 p397-411 Mar-Apr 2007
The ability of individuals with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) to infer mental states from dynamic and static facial stimuli was investigated. In Experiment 1, individuals with ASD (10- to 14-year olds; N = 18) performed above chance but not as well as controls. Accuracy scores for mental states did not differ between dynamic and static faces. Furthermore, participants with ASD gained higher scores when the eyes conveyed information than when this region remained static and neutral. Experiment 2 revealed that those with ASD (11- to 15-year olds; N = 18) were as successful as controls in recognizing mental states when the eyes were presented in isolation or in the context of the whole face. Findings challenge claims that individuals with ASD are impaired at inferring mental states from the eyes.
Descriptors: Autism, Cognitive Ability, Nonverbal Communication, Human Body, Control Groups, Pervasive Developmental Disorders, Stimuli, Task Analysis
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers: N/A

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