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Left Visual Field Biases when Infants Process Faces: A Comparison of Infants at High- and Low-Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder

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Abstract

While it is well-known that individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have difficulties processing faces, very little is known about the origins of these deficits. The current study focused on 6- and 11-month-old infants who were at either high-risk (n = 43) or low-risk (n = 31) for developing ASD based on having a sibling already diagnosed with the disorder. Eye-tracking data were collected while the infants viewed color photographs of faces. Similar to previous studies with both typically developing adults and infants, low-risk infants demonstrated a preference for looking at the left side of the face (known as a left visual field bias) that emerged by 11 months of age. In contrast, high-risk infants did not demonstrate a left visual field bias at either age. Comparisons of the amount of attention given to the eye versus mouth regions indicated no differences between the two risk groups.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health. The authors would like to thank Kao-Wei Chua and Sara Green for their help with testing and data handling.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Eva Dundas

  2. Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Holly Gastgeb

  3. Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, 210 South Bouquet Street, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USA

    Mark S. Strauss

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  1. Eva Dundas
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  2. Holly Gastgeb
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Correspondence to Mark S. Strauss.

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Dundas, E., Gastgeb, H. & Strauss, M.S. Left Visual Field Biases when Infants Process Faces: A Comparison of Infants at High- and Low-Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder. J Autism Dev Disord 42, 2659–2668 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-012-1523-y

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