HealthScience DailyThe autistic brain processes faces differently than scientists thought
A major study of around 400 autistic children found their brains process faces differently and that this gap widens with age rather than closing, as it does in neurotypical kids.
A major new study reveals that autistic children’s brains process faces differently, and those differences may begin earlier than scientists previously thought. Researchers found that brain signals associated with recognizing faces become more specialized as neurotypical children grow older, but show much less change in autistic children. The discovery could help explain why some autistic people have difficulty recognizing faces and reading emotions.
Researchers analysed EEG brain activity across the full scalp in around 400 autistic children to study how they process faces.
The study found that in neurotypical children the brain's response to faces became more specialised with age, but autistic children did not show the same pattern.
The researchers say this is the first time the full volume of EEG data has been used to understand face perception in autism, opening new research directions.
The study found autistic children's face-processing differences grow with age rather than narrowing, which researchers say could shape how early support is designed.
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