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Normal Physiological Emotions but Differences in Expression of Conscious Feelings in Children with High-Functioning Autism

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To provide insight into what aspects of the emotional circuit might be affected in high-functioning autism, we measured indices of physiological emotions and of the expression of conscious feelings in 10 children with high-functioning autism or Asperger syndrome and 10 comparison participants. Pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral pictures were presented while skin conductance responses were measured. Self-report ratings of pleasantness and interestingness were taken between pictures. Skin conductance responses did not differ between the groups. Self report ratings were different, with the children with autism giving more similar answers to the two questions than the comparison children. Impairments in socio-emotional expression in autism may be related to deficits in perception and/or expression of conscious feelings; physiological emotions may be relatively preserved.

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Acknowledgments

This work was partially supported by grants K08 NS 02039 and the National Alliance for Autism Research to Stewart H. Mostofsky, K01 MH 08124 to Melissa C. Goldberg, MH 52432R29, PO1 HD 35468, the Rita Rudel Foundation and the National Alliance for Autism Research to Rebecca J. Landa. We would also like to thank Eva Jansiewicz, Juliana Berman, and Jody Carr for their assistance. A poster version of this study has been published in the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Zlotowski Center for Neuroscience, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel

    D. Ben Shalom & Y. Faran

  2. Department of Developmental Cognitive Neurology, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA

    S. H. Mostofsky & M. C. Goldberg

  3. Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    S. H. Mostofsky

  4. Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    R. L. Hazlett

  5. Department of Psychiatry, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    M. C. Goldberg, R. J. Landa, D. R. McLeod & R. Hoehn-Saric

  6. Center for Autism and Related Disorders, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA

    R. J. Landa

  7. Department of Foreign Literatures and Linguistics, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, POB 653, 84105, Beer Sheva, Israel

    D. Ben Shalom

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  1. D. Ben Shalom
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  2. S. H. Mostofsky
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  3. R. L. Hazlett
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  4. M. C. Goldberg
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  5. R. J. Landa
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  6. Y. Faran
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  7. D. R. McLeod
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  8. R. Hoehn-Saric
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Correspondence to D. Ben Shalom.

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Ben Shalom, D., Mostofsky, S.H., Hazlett, R.L. et al. Normal Physiological Emotions but Differences in Expression of Conscious Feelings in Children with High-Functioning Autism. J Autism Dev Disord 36, 395–400 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-006-0077-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-006-0077-2

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