Superior perceptual capacity in autism: investigating universality, specificity and practical applications for learning.

Lead Research Organisation: University College London
Department Name: Psychology and Human Development

Abstract

Over 1% of the UK population are on the autistic spectrum. These individuals experience atypical social communication and interaction, the presence of repetitive, rigid behaviours and altered sensory experiences. In addition, the cognitive profile of autistic people differs to that of individuals without the condition. For example, it has been suggested that autistic people show a greater tendency to process the details within a visual scene, rather than the overall gist. Cognitive ability also varies hugely within the autistic community: from minimally-verbal individuals with profound intellectual impairment, to those who are verbally fluent with above average IQ. These cognitive differences impact greatly on all aspects of life for autistic people, yet there is currently no consensus on the mechanisms underpinning cognitive strengths and how these might be harnessed to promote learning.

The current proposal centres on one such cognitive difference: the propensity for cognitively able autistic people to take in more perceptual information at any one time, compared to non-autistic individuals. This increased perceptual capacity can confer both practical advantages (enhanced information processing) and disadvantages (susceptibility to distraction) depending on the specific situation. It therefore offers an explanation for many aspects of autistic cognition seen within the research literature, as well as the sensory atypicalities that autistic people report experiencing.

We hypothesise that this superior perceptual capacity is a central aspect of autism - and can offer a target for intervention, and guide the search for the neurobiological mechanisms associated with autism. Further, the reframing of cognitive differences in terms of this ability rather than more traditional disability focused theoretical approaches has profound practical implications for the way we intervene to promote learning, employment and wellbeing for autistic individuals.

The proposed research will establish whether increased perceptual capacity extends to individuals across the entire autism spectrum, i.e. beyond those who are cognitively and verbally able. This will involve developing novel research tasks that are accessible to those who have intellectual impairment, a population that is often excluded from research. Second, it will determine whether this perceptual superiority is unique to autism, or is seen in those with other developmental conditions associated with altered sensory or attentional behaviour (e.g. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Williams Syndrome). Third, the project will look at how individual differences in perceptual capacity can inform personalised educational strategies and promote optimal learning in the classroom.

This research will be the first investigation of the universality and specificity of increased perceptual capacity in autism. The results will inform a new theoretical approach to the condition (or subgroups within it), and an accompanying shift in best practice for intervention. Currently, many support strategies involve the simplification of learning tasks or environments to help reduce distraction. However, if this distraction arises due to increased perceptual capacity, then modification strategies should seek to fill excess capacity rather than reduce the available information. The findings from the current research will be used to develop novel learning tools to help autistic individuals harness the potential benefits (in particular with respect to education, and subsequently employment) while minimising the more challenging aspects associated with increased capacity.
Further, the research takes a participatory approach: with autistic and non-autistic researchers working together to ensure the findings have a meaningful impact on the lives of autistic people and their families.

Planned Impact

The proposed research stands to advance theory and practice: informing a new cognitive approach to the theory of autism (or subgroups within it), and an accompanying shift in best practice for intervention. As such, there are a number of users and beneficiaries of the research, both within and beyond the academic community.

This project places community engagement at its core to ensure that the findings benefit those beyond academia. First, verbally and intellectually able autistic people stand to benefit from the work. For those without co-occurring intellectual impairment, understanding specific cognitive strengths associated with the condition reinforces a positive sense of identity. It also promotes self-advocacy of skills and abilities, along with the contributions that these can make to society - for example within employment. Crucially, the findings will also benefit autistic people with intellectual impairment and their caregivers. This is particularly significant in light of a recent report that revealed that only 4% of autism research funding from 2014-16 was spent on projects involving those with intellectual impairment (Autistica, 2019; Russell, Mandy, Elliot, White, Pittwood & Ford, 2019). The research will highlight how less verbally and cognitively able individuals can be involved in aspects of research that they were previously excluded from. This project will additionally allow a more accurate assessment of attention and perception abilities in this population, and establish whether the abilities of those with intellectual and verbal impairment have previously been underestimated due to research-task demands (rather than cognitive/linguistic deficits). This will allow parents/caregivers to more effectively advocate for their children's capabilities.

For both cognitively able autistic individuals and those with intellectual and verbal impairment, the research will also elucidate targets for intervention within education: both to minimise challenges associated with increased perceptual capacity, but also to harness the additional capacity to promote learning. As such, another key group of beneficiaries are education practitioners. The findings of the proposed research will be used to create new recommendations regarding a capacity-based approach to engaging autistic young people in the classroom. Through its primary base in the Centre for Research in Autism and Education, the project is ideally placed to deliver this aspect of the impact plan, bolstered by education-relevant expertise of the rest of the team.

The strength-based approach of the proposed research means that the findings may also have wider societal impact by raising awareness of autistic individuals in fields such as employability. Understanding autistic people's unique cognitive skills and preferences highlights the meaningful contribution (and indeed competitive edge) they can offer. This stands to benefit not only individual employers but also the UK economy, where the cost of lost employment for autistic adults is estimated at £9 billion per year (Knapp, Romeo, & Beecham, 2009).

The project findings will also have benefits for the wider neurodiverse community. For individuals with ADHD and individuals with WS, hypersensitivity has traditionally been observed as a deficit. By assessing perceptual capacity for the first time in these groups, we will be able to arm these populations with knowledge of whether their hypersensitivity also confers some benefits, with knock-on effects for educational recommendations.

Publications

10 25 50
 
Description This project aims to address the universality and specificity of increased perceptual capacity for autistic people, and its application to education. The key findings thus far are as follows:

(1) New knowledge generated: Is increased perceptual capacity universal in autism? When identifying key cognitive factors that underpin autism, it is important to consider autistic individuals with varying ability levels: i.e. both those who are cognitively and verbally able, and those who have co-occurring intellectual and language impairments. Findings from this grant have begun to indicate that increased perceptual capacity is experienced by autistic adults with a learning disability. This adds to our previous work demonstrating increased perceptual capacity for autistic people without a learning disability, and suggests that increased perceptual capacity is experienced by autistic people irrespective of cognitive ability.

(2) New knowledge generated: Is increased perceptual capacity specific to autism? To further evaluate superior perceptual capacity as a marker of autism, it is crucial to understand whether this is a feature that pertains specifically to autism, or is a more general consequence of having a developmental condition (e.g. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Williams Syndrome). Currently, the majority of autism research is carried out with typical individuals as the comparison group, yet this cannot assess the uniqueness of a particular trait (and consequently its predictive power with respect to autistic symptomatology). Findings from two qualitative studies that we have conducted within this grant offer preliminary evidence that autistic people - but not those with other neurodevelopmental conditions - with and without a learning disabilities have experiences of distraction and focus that are consistent with increased capacity.

(3) Improved research methods developed: Development of Accessible Tasks for participants with learning disabilities. Most autism research studies exclude participants with co-occurring intellectual impairment due to methodological barriers. Within this grant, we have developed an accessible protocol that allows the involvement of people with learning disabilities (i.e. autistic participants and those with Williams Syndrome). This protocol has been made available via open science repositories for use by other research teams.
Exploitation Route The outcomes of this funding may be used by academic and non-academic audiences. Within academia, other research teams can use our accessible protocols to include a wider range of participants in their research - for example those with intellectual impairment. Second, our findings regarding the specificity of increased perceptual capacity may also be used by those researching other developmental conditions to further their understanding of cognitive processes in that particular population, and develop more targeted interventions for specific groups.

Understanding whether challenges with focus and distraction come from increased perceptual capacity or difficulties maintaining attentional priorities can change how one might support any challenges experienced. As such, beyond academia, our findings may also help educators better support their pupils with neurodevelopmental conditions, and help employers support their neurodivergent employees.

Policy makers may use the results of our research to inform the creation of best-practice guidelines for processes and environments that are accessible to all.
Sectors Education

 
Description There are a number of users and beneficiaries of the research from outside the academic community that stand to benefit from the research in this grant. These groups include: verbally and intellectually able autistic people, autistic people with intellectual impairment, those with Williams Syndrome (WS), individuals with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), caregivers, education practitioners, employers, and the wider UK economy. Here we outline what activities we have undertaken thus far to ensure that this impact is realised. The impact activities span three levels of engagement, as operationalized by Pellicano, Dinsmore and Charman (2013): partnership, dialogue and dissemination: Partnership: To facilitate maximum impact, the research is being conducted within a participatory framework where autistic people with and without intellectual impairment, those with WS and ADHD, parents and educators are involved at all stages of the project. This ensures a) the research questions being asked are meaningful for the end users; b) methods are appropriate for the participant groups; c) the interpretation of the results and conclusions drawn are correct; and d) that findings are translated into practical applications that are feasible and effective. Indeed, our core research team is neurodiverse, including autistic and non-autistic researchers and researchers with ADHD. Dialogue: We organised a workshop for educators on ways to harness perceptual capacity differences to promote learning in the classroom. This workshop will inform the creation of a factsheet for educators (currently in progress) and the creation of the stimuli for use in our final classroom-based study. The workshop involved senior leaders and classroom teachers from both mainstream and autism special schools together with university researchers to promote evidence-based practice in their schools. Attendees have already reported back on the impact that our research has had on their classroom practice. Impact on policy has begun via a contribution to the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee: Inquiry into the effects of artificial light and noise on human health. Findings from the studies conducted within the present grant have been included in their written evidence. Dissemination: The findings that have already emerged from the research have been communicated to autistic people and their families via CRAE and UCL Institute of Education social media (reach of over 45K), and the CRAE newsletter (reach of over 12K). The materials has been offered in Easy Read and Infographic formats, overseen by an autistic team member. The wider public has been engaged via public lectures on the project findings (e.g. Pint of Science), and mainstream media (e.g. the PI is involved in a Channel 5 documentary which will include discussion of perceptual superiorities for autistic people).
First Year Of Impact 2023
Sector Education
Impact Types Societal

Policy & public services

 
Description House of Lords Science and Technology Committee: Inquiry into the effects of artificial light and noise on human health
Geographic Reach National 
Policy Influence Type Contribution to a national consultation/review
URL https://committees.parliament.uk/call-for-evidence/3032/
 
Title A Research Passport designed for use with autistic adults with or without learning disabilities 
Description A Research Passport that can be completed by participants prior to meeting with or being interviewed by a researcher. The passport can also be completed by researchers and shared with participants. This research passport was created in consultation with adults with Williams Syndrome and autistic adults with and without learning disabilities. The passport allowed for individualisation of interviews about focus and distraction. 
Type Of Material Physiological assessment or outcome measure 
Year Produced 2022 
Provided To Others? Yes  
Impact A number of researchers are using the tool and have reported back positively. This has not yet been formally quantified. 
URL https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/WQ43F
 
Description Collaboration on a mixed methods survey to investigate selective attention experiences across neurotypes 
Organisation University of Sheffield
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution This collaboration involved developing a survey to collect qualitative data on neurotypical and neurodivergent people's experiences of distraction and focus. The data is being analysed and reported in two separate manuscripts. Our role has involved co-conceptualisation and co-design of survey. Co-conceptualisation and co-design of survey. Arranging PPI on survey design. Leading and co-analysing aspects of qualitative data analysis (thematic and content analysis respectively). First authorship of published manuscript.
Collaborator Contribution Co-conceptualisation and co-design of survey. Arranging consultancy which informed design of the survey. Preparing pre-registration. Analysis of quantitative and co-analysis of qualitative data. First authorship of manuscript (in preparation)
Impact Published manuscript (https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/27546330241229004) Presentation at ITAKOM conference (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeYP6As2Ox0)
Start Year 2022
 
Description Contributor to 'Who I Am Life'. Who I Am Life. On WOWOW. Japanese TV channel. 
Form Of Engagement Activity A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press)
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Media (as a channel to the public)
Results and Impact Brian Irvine (Postdoctoral Researcher on the project) spoke about superior perceptual capacity on on Japanese National TV. The program Who I Am -Life was the second series of documentaries that took a wider view of disability than the original paralympic programming aired on the WoWoW network. Producers were certain that it would be introducing the concept of neurodiversity to many. This has not yet been measured (the activity was very recent).
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2023
URL https://corporate.wowow.co.jp/whoiam/life/4965.html
 
Description Pint of Science (annual science festival for the general public) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Local
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact Anna Remington delivered a public engagement talk as part of the Pint of Science annual festival. This was an accessible talk that aimed to change people's perceptions about autism, and showcase our grant-related research around some of the superior abilities that autistic people experience.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2023
URL https://pintofscience.co.uk/event/how-do-people-perceive-others-and-how-can-others-perceive-us
 
Description Teach Meet: Harnessing Perceptual Differences in the Classroom 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Schools
Results and Impact In the Teach Meet workshop, approximately 25 educators attended - in person - to consider how autistic perceptual differences could be relevant in classroom education. We discussed practical ways to harness the increased information processing: adjusting tasks, expectations, and environments to suit individual needs and create optimal conditions for learning and development. Together with the educators, we co-created possible ideas for the stimuli that will be used in our subsequent classroom-based study. Following the workshop, we received a number of emails giving examples of ways in which our research was impacting the way they viewed the educational practices within their school.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2023
URL https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/teach-meet-harnessing-perceptual-differences-in-the-classroom-tickets...