Sensory processing challenges are common and often difficult for children on the autism spectrum and can affect some neurotypical children. Furthermore, sensory processing atypicalities are associated with autistic traits and other co-occurring behaviors associated with autism, such as intolerance of uncertainty. As such, traits common to autism may vary continuously across diagnostic boundaries (i.e., Broad Autism Phenotype). Working to uncover behavioral and neurophysiologic correlates of sensory differences could positively impact clinical support of children with and without a diagnosis of autism. Therefore, this study examined relationships between sensory processing, intolerance of uncertainty (a possible measure of prediction), autistic traits, and associated resting state brain connectivity, in autistic (n=30) and neurotypical (NT; n=26) children ages 6-11. To this end, we calculated the relationships between behavioral scores on measures related to sensory processing, intolerance of uncertainty, and autistic traits. Also, we carried out independent component network functional connectivity analysis to investigate associations between cortical and cerebellar networks and behavioral results. Autistic participants presented with significant correlations of sensory processing with autistic traits and sensory processing with intolerance of uncertainty. Neurotypical participants presented with significant correlations of autistic traits with sensory processing and autistic traits with intolerance of uncertainty. Between groups correlations demonstrated sensory processing and intolerance of uncertainty scores overlapping and spanning the groups. Brain (rs-fMRI)--behavioral relationships regarding the above were also examined revealing strong associations between sensory and cerebellar networks and behavioral scores. Overall, our findings suggest that sensory differences may be related to altered prediction abilities and, in NT children, autistic traits. Neurophysiologic data pointed to abnormal functional connectivity between sensory cortices and the cerebellum in autistic children. These findings provide evidence for the notion of the BAP and suggest a role of prediction in sensory processing and its behavioral correlates.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) prevalence has risen to one out of every 36 children born in the United States being diagnosed. Many individuals diagnosed experience sensory processing difficulties that make life challenging for them and their caregivers. However, there is no clear consensus on why sensory processing issues occur. Previous research has linked attention function to atypical sensory processing. Our study aimed to understand potential underlying mechanisms and correlates of this relationship. We theorized that prediction is a key contributing factor to how attention and sensory processing interact. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between sensory processing, attention, and prediction in school age children. To accomplish this, we asked parents of 70 children aged 8-11 years old to complete a series of behavioral questionnaires addressing sensory processing, attention, prediction, and autistic traits. A subset of this sample (n = 40) participated in an eye tracking task which addressed the physiologic relationship between sensory processing, attention, and prediction. Partial correlations of the behavioral measures revealed that sensory processing, prediction, some measures of attention, and autistic traits correlated across the combined sample. Mediation analysis showed that prediction played a mediating role on how attention impacts sensory processing. Results from the eye tracking data revealed that prediction, attention, sensory processing, and autistic traits were significantly related to each other. Particularly, between group comparisons showed that the autistic children demonstrated significant difficulty with attention management as trials became more unpredictable, suggesting that autistic individuals struggle to manage their attention and sensory processing abilities as situations become more unpredictable. These novel results indicate the complex relationship that is present between prediction, attention, and sensory processing across the combined sample. These findings could provide insight to the origin of sensory processing difficulties found in ASD, improve diagnostic procedures, yield targets for services, and improve their quality of life for individuals affected by atypical sensory processing, regardless of a diagnosis.

Females may present with autism more frequently than is diagnosed, due, in part, to autistic trait and sensory processing differences. Unfortunately, recruiting enough autistic female participants is difficult, because of such underdiagnoses. By approaching autism as a continuous variable, neurotypical (NT) individuals can be studied to better understand autistic individuals. Thus, to examine potential neurobiological underpinnings of sex-based behavioral profiles, we recruited 52 NT individuals (22 male; 30 female). Participants underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine how functional network connectivity (via group independent components analysis) underpinned overall male/female differences in previously measured behavioral autistic trait and sensory processing questionnaire scores. Results showed that males' sensory processing and autistic trait patterns were correlated with sensorimotor and social brain areas while females' intolerance of uncertainty and autistic traits were correlated with areas implicated in sensory processing and anxiety. Additionally, both sexes exhibited a close relationship between sensory processing (e.g., auditory, higher order visual), social functioning (e.g., middle temporal gyrus), and empathizing (e.g., right temporal-parietal junction, fusiform gyrus), though the networks present within these correlations differed somewhat between the sexes. Systemizing was most strongly correlated with executive functioning and language processing areas in both sexes, with different brain networks showing greater significance in males than females. Overall, males and females displayed similar neurophysiological patterns involved in autistic traits, sensory processing, empathizing, and systemizing, though they seemed to activate these networks differently. Understanding these network differences in an autistic population may provide for sex-specific brain-based interventions for sensory processing, anxiety, and autistic trait manifestation.

Yes / The issue of whether visually-mediated, simple reaction time (VRT) is faster in elite athletes is contentious. Here, we examined if and how VRT is afected by gaze stability in groups of international cricketers (16 females, 28 males), professional rugby-league players (21 males), and non-sporting controls (20 females, 30 males). VRT was recorded via a button-press response to the sudden appearance of a stimulus (circular target—diameter 0.8°), that was presented centrally, or 7.5° to the left or right of fxation. The incidence and timing of saccades and blinks occurring from 450 ms before stimulus onset to 225 ms after onset were measured to quantify gaze stability. Our results show that (1) cricketers have faster VRT than controls; (2) blinks and, in particular, saccades are associated with slower VRT regardless of the level of sporting ability; (3) elite female cricketers had steadier gaze (fewer saccades and blinks) compared to female controls; (4) when we accounted for the presence of blinks and saccades, our group comparisons of VRT were virtually unchanged. The stability of gaze is not a factor that explains the difference between elite and control groups in VRT. Thus we conclude that better gaze stability cannot explain faster VRT in elite sports players. / Biotechnology and Biological Science Research Council (BBSRC, grant references: BB/J018163/1, BB/J016365/1 and BB/J018872/1)

Tjugo procent av alla människor är högkänsliga (HSP = Highly Sensitive Person), vilket innebär att de är födda med ett känsligt nervsystem. Många HSP upplever negativa konsekvenser i sin vardag som påverkar livskvaliteten. Eftersom gruppen HSP är så stor och kopplingen HSP, livskvalitet och självmedkänsla inte specifikt har undersökts, var det relevant att göra den här enkätundersökningen. De undersökta frågeställningar är: Finns det inom gruppen HSP angående variablerna: Livskvalitet, Självmedkänsla, Högkänslighet, BIS, BAS, Extraversion och Neuroticism (a) signifikanta samband mellan samtliga variablerna? (b) Till vilken grad förklarar variablerna Livskvalitet och Högkänslighet? (c) Finns det könsskillnader angående samtliga variablerna? (d) Finns det ett positivt samband mellan Högkänslighet och Ålder? De 111 deltagare var medlemmar i Sveriges Förening för Högkänsliga och samtliga var enligt självskattning HSP, som bekräftades av insamlade data. Deltagargruppen bestod av 93 kvinnor (84%) och 18 män (16%) och genomsnittsålder var 50 år, där lägsta åldern var 35 år och högsta 70. Samtliga frågeställningar har besvarats genom analysmetoderna: Pearsons korrelationsanalys, Standard Multipel Linjär Regression och T-test. Det viktigaste resultatet var att kopplingen mellan HSP och självmedkänsla bidrog med ny kunskap, där slutsatsen blev att utövandet av självmedkänsla kan bidra till att aktivt öka graden av livskvalitet för HSP. Det starkaste sambandet i studien förelåg mellan BIS och neuroticism, vilket betyder att vid en ökning av BIS, ökar graden av negativ affekt och vice versa; resultatet låg i linje med tidigare forskning. Två oväntade resultat var att (a) drivkraften (BASDrive) predicerade högkänslighet mest till skillnad från litteraturen som pekar åt BIS och neuroticism som skulle ha starkast koppling och (b) att graden av högkänslighet sjönk vid ökad ålder; vilket talar emot tidigare forskning. Uppsatsen är en relevant informationskälla för HSP och alla andra som interagerar med HSP. / Twenty percent of all people are highly sensitive (HSP = Highly Sensitive Person) which means that they are born with a sensitive nervous system. Many HSP's are experiencing negative consequences in their everyday lives that affect their quality of life. As the group HSP is large and the correlation between HSP, quality of life and self-compassion is not specifically is investigated, the present study was relevant. The examined questions are: Is there within the group of HSP regarding Quality of Life, Self-compassion, High sensitivity, BIS, BAS, Extraversion and Neuroticism (a) significant correlations between the variables? (b) To what extend do the variables explain Quality of Life and High Sensitivity? (c) Are there gender differences regarding the variables? (d) Is there a positive correlation between High Sensitivity and Age? The 111 participants were members of the Sveriges Förening för Högkänsliga and all were HSP according to self-assessment, which also was confirmed by the data collected. The group of participants consisted of 93 women (84%) and 18 men (16%) and the average age was 50, where the lowest age was 35 years and the highest 70. All questions were answered by these analytical methods: Pearson's correlation analysis, Standard Multiple Linear Regression and T-test. The main outcome was that the link between HSP and self-compassion contributed to new knowledge, which concluded that the practice of Self-compassion can help to actively increase the level of quality of life for HSP's. The strongest correlation in the study was between BIS and neuroticism, which means that at an increase of BIS, the degree of negative affect also increased and vice versa; the result was in line with previous research. Two unexpected results were that (a) the driving force (BASDrive) predicted high sensitivity most, unlike the literature suggesting that BIS and neuroticism would have the strongest connection and (b) the degree of high sensitivity decreased with increase in age; which contradicts earlier research. The essay is a relevant source of information for the HSP and all others who are interacting with HSP.

Rationale: Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder with onset prior to the age of three years characterized by qualitative impairments in social interaction and communication skill, along with a restricted repetitive and stereotyped pattern of behavior, interests, and activities. In addition to these core diagnostic features, aberrant sensory responding has also been widely reported in the literature describing children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Aberrant sensory processing has, however, been infrequently studied compared to communication and cognition in autism and existing studies have had multiple methodological deficiencies, especially with sampling procedures. Purpose. The purpose of this study is to describe patterns of sensory processing found in children with an ASD to test the relationship(s) of these patterns to diagnostic and developmental variables. Method. Retrospective data collection was used to collect developmental and sensory processing variables of 400 children with an ASD. Sensory processing abilities were measured by the SSP. Results. The majority of the sample (80.5%) had a diagnosis of autism. The average age of the sample was 49.58 months. The adaptive, social, language, and motor developmental variables were consistent with diagnostic patterns in that the children with Asperger Disorder demonstrated higher developmental levels than the children with autism and PDD-NOS. Eighty-nine percent of the sample demonstrated some degree of sensory processing dysfunction on the SSP Total Score with the greatest difficulties reported on the Underresponsive/Seeks Sensation, Auditory Filtering, and Tactile Sensitivity sections. Exploratory factor analysis identified 6 parsimonious factors: Low Energy/Weak, Tactile and Movement Sensitivity, Taste/Smell Sensitivity, Auditory and Visual Sensitivity, Sensory Seeking/Distractibility, and Hypo-responsivity. These factor variables contributed to explaining the differences in five of six developmental variables of the sample that are associated with the diagnosis of autism. Receptive language, adaptive and expressive language performance were significantly correlated with sensory processing factor scores. Conclusions. Together, the sensory processing findings noted in this study describe a pattern of dysfunctional sensory modulation. These findings have significant implications for intervention programs involving individuals with an ASD, given the potential impact of these findings on a childs ability to maintain active engagement.

The current study examined anxiety and its observable correlates in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) across a broad range of levels of cognitive functioning that in the past have not been accurately explored. I sought to challenge the assumption that there is a positive linear relationship between anxiety and level of cognitive functioning by including individuals across a broad range of cognitive functioning in my analyses, and by developing a measure (The Somatic Anxiety Scale) appropriate for assessing anxiety symptoms in children with little to no communicative functioning. Sixty-seven parents of children with ASD aged 5 to 12 completed a battery of measures in an online study assessing their child’s anxiety, repetitive behaviours, sensory processing issues, and adaptive functioning. The Somatic Anxiety Scale was significantly correlated with an existing measure of anxiety designed for verbal children (when only highly verbal children were assessed), suggesting that it may provide a foundation to develop a measure of anxiety symptoms in non-verbal individuals. No clear predictive relationship was observed between level of cognitive functioning and anxiety. Both lower and higher-order repetitive behaviours predicted anxiety, although higher-order behaviours were more predictive. Finally, a cluster analysis indicated three patterns of anxious behaviour divided across three categorizations of level of functioning. I suggest that previous assumptions about the relationship between level of cognitive functioning and anxiety may be underestimating the complexity of the relationship and suggest future research to study this relationship further. / Thesis (Master, Psychology) -- Queen's University, 2013-10-30 10:25:56.049

Master of Landscape Architecture / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Anne E. Beamish / The purpose of this research was to develop a mobile sensory garden to help children with Sensory Integration Disorders. Sensory Integration (SI) is how an individual processes sensory information. Issues with sensory integration can lead to behavioral disorders, which can cause difficulties with social-emotional skills, gross motor skills, fine motor skills, play skills, and self-help skills. The goal of the project was to develop a mobile sensory garden to help alleviate or reduce the negative aspects of Sensory Integration Disorders. The research involved qualitative research, projective design, and evaluative research on a mobile sensory cart that was used in an elementary school in Topeka, Kansas. Methods included: interviews, design/build, and observation. The current sensory room was inventoried in Williams Science & Fine Arts Elementary Magnet School in Topeka, Kansas, and the children who used were observed. The faculty at the school, including the principal, teachers whose students use the current sensory room, counselors, and other support faculty, were interviewed. Once the observations were analyzed, a mobile sensory garden cart was designed and built. The new cart was brought to the elementary school and placed in the sensory room. A second phase of observation assessed how the children interacted with the new mobile sensory garden cart. During the second phase of observation the children showed intense interest in the mobile sensory garden cart. Some of this can be attributed to it being a new item in the sensory room. Some of the most popular items included the zen garden, wood slices on the wooden dowel, and the plants. In the second week children transitioned to using both the sensory garden cart and the original items in the sensory room. When an item on the sensory garden cart best suited their needs, that item was chosen and when their needs were best suited by other items in the room then that item was chosen. Overall the mobile sensory garden cart was beneficial to the school and the children. It can be easily replicated and modified to fit the individual needs of the children and school.

abstract: This study investigated the relation between Sensory Processing Sensitivity (SPS) temperament and depression, and whether such a relation might be further influenced by the indirect effects of parenting environment and empathic personal distress. A moderated mediation model was proposed to explain the underlying relations among SPS, depression, parenting environment and empathic personal distress. That is, greater levels of SPS temperament might predict higher levels of empathic personal distress, which then leads to increasing likelihood of experiencing depression. Moreover, it was predicted that this mediation relation might be significantly stronger under a less positive parenting context. The present study recruited 661 participants from a U.S. university and implemented questionnaires in an online survey. There was a significant main effect of SPS temperament in predicting empathic personal distress and depression, such that the more sensitive individuals reported higher empathic personal distress and depression. There also was a significant main effect of parenting environment on depression, where more positive parenting was associated with less depression. Empathic personal distress was found to partially mediate the relation between SPS and depression. That is, the association between SPS and depression could be partially explained by empathic personal distress. However, parenting environment did not moderate the main effect of SPS temperament on depression, the main effect of SPS on empathic personal distress, or the mediation model. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Psychology 2019

Purpose: This was a pilot study assessing the impact of a sensory adapted dental environment (SADE) on children with developmental disabilities (DD) receiving routine dental care. Methods: A crossover study of 22 children with DD, aged 6 through 21, was conducted at Virginia Commonwealth University Pediatric Dental clinic. Each participant was randomized to a sequence of two dental cleanings, one regular dental environment (RDE) and one SADE with a 3-4-month recall. Outcomes included physiological measures (heart rate and oxygen saturation) and cooperation (Frankl scores). Results: Study subjects completed a total of 36 visits. None of the physiological measures differed at either time point between the two treatment settings. The Frankl scores were significantly higher with SADE setting than RDE (p =0.0368). Forty-six percent of parents strongly agreed that they would prefer the SADE for their child’s next visit. Conclusion: SADE may be associated with improved behavior in children with DD.