Exploring the Relationship between Exteroception and Interoception in Neurotypical and Neurodivergent Populations

Sensory differences are frequently reported within the population perhaps being most commonly associated with different neurodivergent conditions. This includes in autistic individuals, where up to 96% of people have reported sensory differences (Crane et al., 2009), as well as in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Whether these differences are associated with being either hyper or hypo-sensitive to sensory stimuli, there is a growing appreciation for the adverse effects they can have on a person's emotional and social wellbeing. It is therefore critical to understand what is underlying these differences which, in turn, will help to develop vital interventions to better help and support the neurodivergent population.

With the growing appreciation for the impact and frequency of sensory differences, research has begun to study how these senses are different focusing heavily on the basic external senses including: touch, smell, sight, sound and taste. An area that is rapidly gaining attention, however, is the differences in the internal sensory system within the neurodiverse population. This includes precepts such as interoception (an understanding of what is happening inside the body) and proprioception (knowing where the body is in space). Work conducted by Chen et al. (2021) has highlighted how both the internal and external systems may be interacting in a crucial way to regulate the sensory experience. From this, it can therefore be questioned as to whether this is underlying the differences in sensory experiences. Understanding whether these systems are interacting differently will be crucial to develop a better understanding as to why these differences emerge as well as focus interventions to target specific regulatory differences within the population.

The proposed study aims to take advantage of virtual reality MIRAGE illusion technology to systematically manipulate the relationship between the external and internal sensory systems to better understand how the relationship between these two systems is different in the neurodivergent population. Using MIRAGE, multisensory illusions can be implemented and differences observed between populations. This methodology negates previous challenges that accompany illusions of embodiment where the participant must first adopt a prop as their own body part, something especially challenging within the autistic population. Instead, this method allows a real time image to make it appear that the illusion is happening with the participants body. Thus, this project will take a unique approach to studying the relationship between the external and internal senses and how this may be different in the neurodiverse population.