Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Age-Related Differences in Response to Music-Evoked Emotion Among Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders Aims and scope Submit manuscript

An Erratum to this article was published on 23 December 2015

Abstract

While research regarding emotion recognition in ASD has focused primarily on social cues, musical stimuli also elicit strong emotional responses. This study extends and expands the few previous studies of response to music in ASD, measuring both psychophysiological and behavioral responses in younger children (ages 8–11) as well as older adolescents (ages 16–18). Compared to controls, the ASD group demonstrated reduced skin conductance response to music-evoked emotion. Younger groups, regardless of diagnosis, showed greater physiological reactivity to scary stimuli than to other emotions. There was a significant interaction of age group and diagnostic group in identifying scary music stimuli, possibly evidencing disrupted developmental trajectories in ASD for integrating physiological and cognitive cues that may underlie symptoms of anxiety.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Adolphs, R., Baron-Cohen, S., & Tranel, D. (2002). Impaired recognition of social emotions following amygdala damage. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 14(8), 1264–1274. doi:10.1162/089892902760807258.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Amaral, D. G., Schumann, C. M., & Nordahl, C. W. (2008). Neuroanatomy of autism. Trends in Neurosciences, 31(3), 137–145. doi:10.1016/j.tins.2007.12.005.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aubé, W., Angulo-Perkins, A., Peretz, I., Concha, L., & Armony, J. L. (2015). Fear across the senses: Brain responses to music, vocalizations and facial expressions. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 10(3), 399–407. doi:10.1093/scan/nsu067.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Baron-Cohen, S., Wheelwright, S., Skinner, R., Martin, J., & Clubley, E. (2001). The autism-spectrum quotient (AQ): Evidence from asperger syndrome/high-functioning autism, males and females, scientists and mathematicians. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 31(1), 5–17.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Berkowitz, R. L., Coplan, J. D., Reddy, D. P., & Gorman, J. M. (2007). The human dimension: How the prefrontal cortex modulates the subcortical fear response. Reviews in the Neurosciences, 18(3–4), 191–207.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bhatara, A. K., Quintin, E.-M., Heaton, P., Fombonne, E., & Levitin, D. J. (2009). The effect of music on social attribution in adolescents with autism spectrum disorders. Child Neuropsychology, 15(4), 375–396. doi:10.1080/09297040802603653.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bradley, M. M., & Lang, P. J. (1994). Measuring emotion: The self-assessment manikin and the semantic differential. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 25(1), 49–59. doi:10.1016/0005-7916(94)90063-9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chamberlain, P. D., Rodgers, J., Crowley, M. J., White, S. E., Freeston, M. H., & South, M. (2013). A potentiated startle study of uncertainty and contextual anxiety in adolescents diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Molecular Autism, 4(1), 31. doi:10.1186/2040-2392-4-31.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Conner, C. M., Maddox, B. B., & White, S. W. (2013). Parents’ state and trait anxiety: Relationships with anxiety severity and treatment response in adolescents with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 43(8), 1811–1818. doi:10.1007/s10803-012-1728-0.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Constantino, J. N., Davis, S. A., Todd, R. D., Schindler, M. K., Gross, M. M., Brophy, S. L., et al. (2003). Validation of a brief quantitative measure of autistic traits: Comparison of the social responsiveness scale with the autism diagnostic interview-revised. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 33(4), 427–433. doi:10.1023/A:1025014929212.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Daly, E. M., Deeley, Q., Ecker, C., Craig, M., Hallahan, B., Murphy, C., & Murphy, D. G. M. (2012). Serotonin and the neural processing of facial emotions in adults with autism: An fMRI study using acute tryptophan depletion. JAMA Psychiatry, 69(10), 1003–1013.

    Google Scholar 

  • Demenescu, L. R., Kortekaas, R., den Boer, J. A., & Aleman, A. (2010). Impaired attribution of emotion to facial expressions in anxiety and major depression. PLoS One. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0015058.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Deschamps, P. K. H., Coppes, L., Kenemans, J. L., Schutter, D. J. L. G., & Matthys, W. (2013). Electromyographic responses to emotional facial expressions in 6–7 year olds with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 45(2), 354–362. doi:10.1007/s10803-013-1890-z.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Easter, J., McClure, E. B., Monk, C. S., Dhanani, M., Hodgdon, H., Leibenluft, E., et al. (2005). Emotion recognition deficits in pediatric anxiety disorders: Implications for amygdala research. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology, 15(4), 563–570. doi:10.1089/cap.2005.15.563.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ecker, C., Suckling, J., Deoni, S. C., Lombardo, M. V., Bullmore, E. T., Baron-Cohen, S., et al. (2012). Brain anatomy and its relationship to behavior in adults with autism spectrum disorder: A multicenter magnetic resonance imaging study. Archives of General Psychiatry, 69(2), 195–209. doi:10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2011.1251.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ewing, L., Pellicano, E., & Rhodes, G. (2013). Using effort to measure reward value of faces in children with autism. PLoS One. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0079493.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gosselin, N., Peretz, I., Johnsen, E., & Adolphs, R. (2007). Amygdala damage impairs emotion recognition from music. Neuropsychologia, 45(2), 236–244. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2006.07.012.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gotham, K., Bishop, S. L., Hus, V., Huerta, M., Lund, S., Buja, A., et al. (2013). Exploring the relationship between anxiety and insistence on sameness in autism spectrum disorders. Autism Research, 6(1), 33–41. doi:10.1002/aur.1263.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Greimel, E., Nehrkorn, B., Schulte-Rüther, M., Fink, G. R., Nickl-Jockschat, T., Herpertz-Dahlmann, B., et al. (2013). Changes in grey matter development in autism spectrum disorder. Brain Structure and Function, 218(4), 929–942. doi:10.1007/s00429-012-0439-9.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Greimel, E., Schulte-Rüther, M., Kamp-Becker, I., Remschmidt, H., Herpertz-Dahlmann, B., & Konrad, K. (2014). Impairment in face processing in autism spectrum disorder: A developmental perspective. Journal of Neural Transmission, 121(9), 1171–1181. doi:10.1007/s00702-014-1206-2.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hattingh, C. J., Ipser, J., Tromp, S. A., Syal, S., Lochner, C., Brooks, S. J., & Stein, D. J. (2013). Functional magnetic resonance imaging during emotion recognition in social anxiety disorder: An activation likelihood meta-analysis. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 6, 347. doi:10.3389/fnhum.2012.00347.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Jou, R. J., Jackowski, A. P., Papademetris, X., Rajeevan, N., Staib, L. H., & Volkmar, F. R. (2011). Diffusion tensor imaging in autism spectrum disorders: Preliminary evidence of abnormal neural connectivity. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 45(2), 153–162. doi:10.3109/00048674.2010.534069.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Juslin, P. N. (2001). Communicating emotion in music performance: A review and a theoretical framework. In P. N. Juslin & J. A. Sloboda (Eds.), Music and emotion: Theory and research (pp. 309–337). New York, NY, US: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kennedy, D. P., & Adolphs, R. (2012). Perception of emotions from facial expressions in high-functioning adults with autism. Neuropsychologia, 50(14), 3313–3319. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2012.09.038.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Khalfa, S., Roy, M., Rainville, P., Dalla Bella, S., & Peretz, I. (2008). Role of tempo entrainment in psychophysiological differentiation of happy and sad music? International Journal of Psychophysiology, 68(1), 17–26. doi:10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2007.12.001.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Koelsch, S. (2014). Brain correlates of music-evoked emotions. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 15(3), 170–180. doi:10.1038/nrn3666.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kushki, A., Drumm, E., Pla Mobarak, M., Tanel, N., Dupuis, A., Chau, T., & Anagnostou, E. (2013). Investigating the autonomic nervous system response to anxiety in children with autism spectrum disorders. PLoS One. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0059730.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Lang, P. J., Bradley, M. M., & Cuthbert, B. N. (1998). Emotion and motivation: Measuring affective perception. Journal of Clinical Neurophysiology, 15(5), 397–408.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Larsen, J. T., Berntson, G. G., Poehlmann, K. M., Ito, T. A., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2008). The psychophysiology of emotion. Handbook of emotions (3rd ed., pp. 180–195). New York, NY: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, T. C., Dupuis, A., Jones, E., Guberman, C., Herbert, M., & Manassis, K. (2013). Effects of age and subtype on emotional recognition in children with anxiety disorders: Implications for cognitive-behavioural therapy. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 58(5), 283–290.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lord, C., Risi, S., Lambrecht, L., Cook, E. H, Jr, Leventhal, B. L., DiLavore, P. C., et al. (2000). The Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule—Generic: A standard measure of social and communication deficits associated with the spectrum of autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 30(3), 205–223. doi:10.1023/A:1005592401947.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Louwerse, A., Tulen, J. H. M., van der Geest, J. N., van der Ende, J., Verhulst, F. C., & Greaves-Lord, K. (2014). Autonomic responses to social and nonsocial pictures in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. Autism Research, 7(1), 17–27. doi:10.1002/aur.1327.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Luke, L., Clare, I. C. H., Ring, H., Redley, M., & Watson, P. (2012). Decision-making difficulties experienced by adults with autism spectrum conditions. Autism, 16(6), 612–621. doi:10.1177/1362361311415876.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lundqvist, L.-O., Carlsson, F., Hilmersson, P., & Juslin, P. N. (2009). Emotional responses to music: Experience, expression, and physiology. Psychology of Music, 37(1), 61–90. doi:10.1177/0305735607086048.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McIntosh, D. N., Miller, L. J., & Shyu, V. (1999). Development and validation of the short sensory profile. In W. Dunn (Ed.), Sensory profile manual (pp. 59–73). San Antonio, TX: Psychological Corporation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Monk, C. S., Peltier, S. J., Wiggins, J. L., Weng, S.-J., Carrasco, M., Risi, S., & Lord, C. (2009). Abnormalities of intrinsic functional connectivity in autism spectrum disorders. NeuroImage, 47(2), 764–772. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2009.04.069.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Nauta, M. H., Scholing, A., Rapee, R. M., Abbott, M., Spence, S. H., & Waters, A. (2004). A parent-report measure of children’s anxiety: Psychometric properties and comparison with child-report in a clinic and normal sample. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 42(7), 813–839. doi:10.1016/S0005-7967(03)00200-6.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nickl-Jockschat, T., Rottschy, C., Thommes, J., Schneider, F., Laird, A. R., Fox, P. T., & Eickhoff, S. B. (2014). Neural networks related to dysfunctional face processing in autism spectrum disorder. Brain Structure and Function, 220(4), 2355–2371. doi:10.1007/s00429-014-0791-z.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Ozsivadjian, A., & Knott, F. (2011). Anxiety problems in young people with autism spectrum disorder: A case series. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 16(2), 203–214. doi:10.1177/1359104511404749.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pessoa, L., & Adolphs, R. (2010). Emotion processing and the amygdala: From a “low road” to “many roads” of evaluating biological significance. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 11(11), 773–783. doi:10.1038/nrn2920.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Quintin, E.-M., Bhatara, A., Poissant, H., Fombonne, E., & Levitin, D. J. (2011). Emotion perception in music in high-functioning adolescents with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 41(9), 1240–1255. doi:10.1007/s10803-010-1146-0.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Riby, D. M., Hanley, M., Kirk, H., Clark, F., Little, K., Fleck, R., et al. (2014). The interplay between anxiety and social functioning in Williams syndrome. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 44(5), 1220–1229. doi:10.1007/s10803-013-1984-7.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rodgers, J., Glod, M., Connolly, B., & McConachie, H. (2012). The relationship between anxiety and repetitive behaviours in autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 42(11), 2404–2409. doi:10.1007/s10803-012-1531-y.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Roy, M., Mailhot, J.-P., Gosselin, N., Paquette, S., & Peretz, I. (2009). Modulation of the startle reflex by pleasant and unpleasant music. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 71(1), 37–42. doi:10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2008.07.010.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schultz, R. T. (2005). Developmental deficits in social perception in autism: The role of the amygdala and fusiform face area. International Journal of Developmental Neuroscience, 23(2–3), 125–141. doi:10.1016/j.ijdevneu.2004.12.012.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schumann, C. M., Hamstra, J., Goodlin-Jones, B. L., Lotspeich, L. J., Kwon, H., Buonocore, M. H., et al. (2004). The amygdala is enlarged in children but not adolescents with autism; the hippocampus is enlarged at all ages. The Journal of Neuroscience, 24(28), 6392–6401. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1297-04.2004.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Shafritz, K. M., Bregman, J. D., Ikuta, T., & Szeszko, P. R. (2015). Neural systems mediating decision-making and response inhibition for social and nonsocial stimuli in autism. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry, 60, 112–120. doi:10.1016/j.pnpbp.2015.03.001.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Shin, L. M., & Liberzon, I. (2009). The neurocircuitry of fear, stress, and anxiety disorders. Neuropsychopharmacology, 35(1), 169–191. doi:10.1038/npp.2009.83.

    Article  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Song, Y., & Hakoda, Y. (2012). The interference of local over global information processing in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder of the inattentive type. Brain and Development, 34(4), 308–317. doi:10.1016/j.braindev.2011.07.010.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • South, M., Chamberlain, P. D., Wigham, S., Newton, T., Le Couteur, A., McConachie, H., et al. (2014). Enhanced decision making and risk avoidance in high-functioning autism spectrum disorder. Neuropsychology, 28(2), 222–228. doi:10.1037/neu0000016.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • South, M., Newton, T., & Chamberlain, P. D. (2012). Delayed reversal learning and association with repetitive behavior in autism spectrum disorders. Autism Research, 5(6), 398–406. doi:10.1002/aur.1255.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • South, M., Ozonoff, S., Suchy, Y., Kesner, R. P., McMahon, W. M., & Lainhart, J. E. (2008). Intact emotion facilitation for nonsocial stimuli in autism: Is amygdala impairment in autism specific for social information? Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 14(01), 42–54. doi:10.1017/S1355617708080107.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Spence, S. H. (1998). A measure of anxiety symptoms among children. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 36(5), 545–566.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tanaka, J. W., Wolf, J. M., Klaiman, C., Koenig, K., Cockburn, J., Herlihy, L., et al. (2012). The perception and identification of facial emotions in individuals with autism spectrum disorders using the Let’s Face It! Emotion Skills Battery. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 53(12), 1259–1267. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.2012.02571.x.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Uljarevic, M., & Hamilton, A. (2013). Recognition of emotions in autism: A formal meta-analysis. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 43(7), 1517–1526. doi:10.1007/s10803-012-1695-5.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • van Steensel, F. J. A., Bögels, S. M., & Perrin, S. (2011). Anxiety disorders in children and adolescents with autistic spectrum disorders: A meta-analysis. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 14(3), 302–317. doi:10.1007/s10567-011-0097-0.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Vasa, R. A., Kalb, L., Mazurek, M., Kanne, S., Freedman, B., Keefer, A., et al. (2013). Age-related differences in the prevalence and correlates of anxiety in youth with autism spectrum disorders. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 7(11), 1358–1369. doi:10.1016/j.rasd.2013.07.005.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • von dem Hagen, E. A. H., Stoyanova, R. S., Baron-Cohen, S., & Calder, A. J. (2013). Reduced functional connectivity within and between “social” resting state networks in autism spectrum conditions. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 8(6), 694–701. doi:10.1093/scan/nss053.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • White, S. W., Mazefsky, C. A., Dichter, G. S., Chiu, P. H., Richey, J. A., & Ollendick, T. H. (2014). Social-cognitive, physiological, and neural mechanisms underlying emotion regulation impairments: Understanding anxiety in autism spectrum disorder. International Journal of Developmental Neuroscience, 39, 22–36. doi:10.1016/j.ijdevneu.2014.05.012.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • White, S. W., Oswald, D., Ollendick, T., & Scahill, L. (2009). Anxiety in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders. Clinical Psychology Review, 29(3), 216–229. doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2009.01.003.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, D., & Happé, F. (2010). Recognising “social” and “non-social” emotions in self and others: A study of autism. Autism, 14(4), 285–304. doi:10.1177/1362361309344849.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wong, N., Beidel, D. C., Sarver, D. E., & Sims, V. (2012). Facial emotion recognition in children with high functioning autism and children with social phobia. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 43(5), 775–794. doi:10.1007/s10578-012-0296-z.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Worsham, W., Gray, W. E., Larson, M. J., & South, M. (2014). Conflict adaptation and congruency sequence effects to social–emotional stimuli in individuals with autism spectrum disorders. Autism. doi:10.1177/1362361314553280. (Advance online publication).

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank our study participants and their families for their willingness to participate in this research. Special thanks to Porter Charles for design of the self-assessment manikins. This research was supported by a College of Family, Home and Social Sciences Research Award from Brigham Young University.

Author Contributions

KGS conceived of the study, participated in the design and coordination (including data acquisition), performed the statistical analyses, and drafted the manuscript. EMQ helped with study conception and design, data interpretation, and drafting of manuscript. MS also helped with study conception and design, data interpretation, and drafting of manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Brigham Young University, 245 TLRB, Provo, UT, 84602, USA

    K. G. Stephenson

  2. Educational and Counselling Psychology Department, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada

    E. M. Quintin

  3. Department of Psychology, Neuroscience Center, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, USA

    M. South

Authors
  1. K. G. Stephenson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. E. M. Quintin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. M. South
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to K. G. Stephenson.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary material 1 (DOC 94 kb)

Appendix

Appendix

See Table 1.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Stephenson, K.G., Quintin, E.M. & South, M. Age-Related Differences in Response to Music-Evoked Emotion Among Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders. J Autism Dev Disord 46, 1142–1151 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-015-2624-1

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-015-2624-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation