Application of Eye-Tracking Techniques in the Study of Autism - Essay Example

Application of eye-tracking techniques in the study of autism Application of eye-tracking techniques in the study of autism Background of the study For many years, eye tracking techniques have been used in the investigation of gaze behavior in populations. Recent discoveries in this field have however provided important insights on how the applications of eye tracking techniques can be extended to the study of individuals with behavioral disorders such as autism. According to Merin and Young (2006), the study of gaze behavior can effectively reveal the reactions that are usually adopted by individuals who suffer from autism when they are processing social information. Autism is a serious developmental disorder that is largely characterized by a number of social behavioral impairments ranging from problems in interpersonal communication, poor social interactions as well as the occurrence of abnormal repetitive behavioral patterns. Although the exact cause of this abnormality is still unknown, the study of autism has attracted interest from many researchers and many theories suggest that the likely causes of autism may be a combination of genetic factors, diet, and mercury poisoning and vaccine sensitivity among other factors. The number of reports of autism and other related disorders is rapidly on the increase and there are more cases today than previously imagined (APA, 2000).Some previous researches have focused on the correlations between cognitive deficits and autism disorder. Previous studies have however failed to conclusively explain the range of symptomatic behaviors that characterize individuals with autism disorder. For example there are individuals that display autism symptoms despite having normal cognitive abilities and unimpaired mental states. Consequently this research proposal will significantly contribute more knowledge and insight regarding the study and diagnosis of the disorder (Dalton and Davidson, 2005).T he research on the use of eye tracking techniques in the study of autism is also important since will help validate the findings of the previous researches that have sought to determine the possible causes of the increased incidence as well as to enhance its early detection. Aims 1. The primary aim of the research proposal is to determine how eye tracking techniques can be used to study and detect abnormal behaviors associated with autism disorder in their social interactions. 2. The proposed study will also seek to analyze the potential correlation between gaze behavior and cognitive difficulties in the everyday social interactions of individuals with autism disorders. Methods The proposed methods to be used in this research are based the determination of the regions of an object that provided visual stimulus to individuals fixating on them. By studying the gaze behavior of individuals, social psychologists can analyze their reactions to the visual objects to predict how they process social information and this is particularly important in the study of high functioning autism and other related behavioral abnormalities (Kemner and van Engeland, 2003).This research proposal seeks to carry out eye tracking and gaze pattern experiments using a total number of twenty individuals including 10 members with autism or related disorders and another group of 10 individuals as a control experiment. All the individuals in both the two groups will be required to watch a video clip featuring characters who are engaged in social interactions. The subjects will not be given any task but will only be instructed to watch the clips. The main rationale behind using video clips depicting social interactions as opposed to static clips in this experiment is that they are more likely to simulate real life social interactions than still life pictures (Jacob and Karn, 2003). Score cards will then be used to record the gaze directions each individual in both the study groups. The average time that each of each individual’s gaze on the video clip will also be recorded. Predicted outcomes of the research One of the main expected outcomes of the proposed experiment is that the members of the group who are suffering from autism disorder will be expected to spend less time gazing at the eyes of the characters in the video clip (Reiss, 2009).Instead the autism group will focus more frequently at their bodies, mouth movements and other objects displayed in the clip. On the other hand, normal individuals are expected to demonstrate a particular gaze pattern which largely involves more fixating on the eyes and less on the other parts of the body and the surrounding objects (Just and Carpenter, 2000). The experiment does not however expect significant differences between the control group autism group regarding their frequency of fixations to both the eye and the other parts of the body regions such as the mouth. The experiment does not however expect significant differences between the control group autism group regarding their frequency of fixations to both the eye and the other parts of the body regions such as the mouth. According to Gramatikov and Guyton (2007), the study of gaze behavior has been previously employed by many cognitive psychologists in an attempt to analyze the processing of stimuli in individuals. This is generally based on the premise that when an individual directly fixates an object, the image of the object usually falls on the fovea part of retina which is largely responsible for visual processing (Klin, Jones and Cohen, 2002).The eyes are therefore forced to move to allow the fovea to inspect the entire visual object. Finally Hoffman (1998) also concurs that the information related to gaze behavior can be effectively used to indicate the position of the visual stimulus of the particular individuals being examined. Conclusion In conclusion, the possible implication of this research proposal is based on the premise that less fixation to the eye as a gaze behavior can be used as a likely indicator of the social competence or disability of autistic individuals. Another potential implication of the research is that eye tracking techniques can effectively be used to shed more light on the correlation between cognitive processes and social ability of individuals particularly those suffering from autism disorders. This is because autism individuals tend to rely more on the information from the mouth region as opposed to the eyes. References American Psychiatric Association.(2000). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM IV-TR Fourth Edition. American Psychiatric Publishing. Dalton, K., Davidson, R. (2005). Gaze fixation and the neural circuitry of face processing in autism. Nature Neurosci 8, 519-526. Gramatikov B., Guyton D. (2007). Directional eye fixation sensor using birefringence-based foveal detection. Appl Optics 46, 1809-1818. Hoffman, J. (1998). Visual attention and eye movements. Hove : Psychology Press. Jacob, R. Karn, K. (2003). Eye Tracking in Human-Computer Interaction and Usability Research: Ready to Deliver the Promises. Boston: North-Holland/Elsevier. Just M., Carpenter P. (2000). A theory of reading: from eye fixation to comprehension. Psychol Rev 87:329-354. Kemner C., van Engeland H. (2003). Autism and visual fixation. Am J Psychiatry 160, 1358–1359. Klin A, Jones W, Cohen, D. (2002). Visual fixation patterns during viewing of naturalistic social situations as predictors of social competence in individuals with autism. Arch Gen Psychiatry 59, 809-816. Merin N, Young G. (2006). Visual fixation patterns during reciprocal social interaction distinguish a subgroup of 6-month-old infants at risk for autism from comparison infants. J Autism Dev Disord 37, 108-121. Reiss A. (2009). Childhood developmental disorders: an academic and clinical convergence point for psychiatry, neurology, psychology and pediatrics. J Child Psychol Psychiatry, 50, 87-98. Read More