Social behavior phenotypes in fragile X syndrome, autism, and the Fmr1 knockout mouse: Theoretical comment on McNaughton et al. (2008).

Comments on the article by C. H. McNaughton et al. ((see record 2008-03769-005). Individuals with fragile X syndrome (FXS) show varying degrees of social behavior disturbances, from social anxiety to autism. This variability of social behavior phenotypes in FXS is likely to be due to interactions of Fmr1 with other gene variants and environmental factors during brain development, although very little is known about the specific genetic and neural mechanisms involved. The Fmr1 knockout mouse is an important experimental resource for elucidating the neural mechanisms of social anxiety, social reward, and social cognition. However, studies of social behavior phenotypes in the Fmr1 knockout mouse are still in early stages. McNaughton et al provide important new information on these phenotypes in the Fmr1 knockout mouse through their use of novel, detailed behavioral analysis to identify signs of increased social anxiety and social cognition deficits. Their significant refinements in measurement of social behavior phenotypes will help to advance future efforts to elucidate the genetic and neural mechanisms underlying social behavior disturbances in FXS and autism. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Early Social Attention Impairments in Autism: Social Orienting, Joint Attention, and Attention to Distress.

This study investigated social attention impairments in autism (social orienting, joint attention, and attention to another's distress) and their relations to language ability. Three- to four-year-old children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD; n = 72), 3- to 4-year-old developmentally delayed children (n = 34), and 12- to 46-month-old typically developing children (n = 39), matched on mental age, were compared on measures of social orienting, joint attention, and attention to another's distress. Children with autism performed significantly worse than the comparison groups in all of these domains. Combined impairments in joint attention and social orienting were found to best distinguish young children with ASD from those without ASD. Structural equation modeling indicated that joint attention was the best predictor of concurrent language ability. Social orienting and attention to distress were indirectly related to language through their relations with joint attention. These results help to clarify the nature of social attention impairments in autism, offer clues to developmental mechanisms, and suggest targets for early intervention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Making Sense of Self-Conscious Emotion: Linking Theory of Mind and Emotion in Children With Autism.

Self-conscious emotions such as embarrassment and shame are associated with 2 aspects of theory of mind (ToM): (a) the ability to understand that behavior has social consequences in the eyes of others and (b) an understanding of social norms violations. The present study aimed to link ToM with the recognition of self-conscious emotion. Children with and without autism identified facial expressions conscious of self-conscious and non-self-conscious emotions from photographs. ToM was also measured. Children with autism performed more poorly than comparison children at identifying self-conscious emotions, though they did not differ in the recognition of non-self-conscious emotions. When ToM ability was statistically controlled, group differences in the recognition of self-conscious emotion disappeared. Discussion focused on the links between ToM and self-conscious emotion. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Guessing behavior and autism.

"As a test of predictions derived from Osgood's theory of meaning and Murphy's theory of autism, 4 experiments in guessing behavior were conducted. Adjectives highly correlated with goodness and positive value were selected, and translations of these semantic codes into experimental manipulations were specified… . A random series of 2 profiles was presented to S, each profile being associated with one of the experimental manipulations. Later a different random series of the same 2 profiles was presented, and S was asked to guess the order in which they would appear. Profiles associated with operations reflecting the adjectives near, high, and bright were significantly overguessed while their opposites were underguessed." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Autism: New Directions in Research and Education.

Reviews the book, Autism: New Directions in Research and Education by Christopher D. Webster, M. Mary Konstantareas, Joel Oxman, and Judith E. Mack ( 1980). Autism: New Directions in Research and Education is an important and often intriguing collection of formal and informal papers presenting a view of autism as a severe, extensive and perhaps particular communication disorder. Of the twenty-five papers included in the volume, only three were not written by one of the four editors as at least a co-author. While this factor undoubtedly adds to the cumulative power of the volume, it may also have influenced the inclusion of several general papers, such as how to write a scientific report, which are only tangentially related to the specialty topic. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Early infantile autism: Symptom and syndrome.

Examination was made of the interrelation of neurological evidence, behavioral symptom picture, and parent educational status for sixty cases of early infantile autism. Findings suggest that E.I.A. is possibly some consequence of the interaction of multiform neuropathology and parental expectation stress. The recommendations are for environmental and behavioral modification procedures and for educational patterning regimes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The incidence of shopping cart-related injuries in the United States, 2002--2006

BACKGROUND: Shopping cart-related injuries are an important cause of childhood injury in the United States (US). To date, few studies have investigated the epidemiology and incidence of these injuries. METHODS: The National Electronic Injury Surveillance System was utilized to identify shopping cart-related injuries from 2002 to 2006. Injury rates were calculated using the 2006 US population estimates for gender (male and female), age group (<5 years, 5-9 years, and 10-14 years), and race (White, Black, and other). RESULTS: The overall injury rate was 37.8 per 100,000 person years (PY). Injury rates did not differ significantly by gender or race. However, injury rates decreased markedly with increasing age and were highest among children <5 years of age (97.8 per 100,000 PY), followed by children 5-9 years (13.9 per 100,000 PY), and children 10-14 years (2.9 per 100,000 PY). CONCLUSIONS: Shopping carts continue to be an important cause of injuries among children. Directing safety awareness toward those families with children <5 years, mandatory safety standards, and modification of shopping cart design may decrease injury rates.     

The profile of memory function in children with autism.

A clinical memory test was administered to 38 high-functioning children with autism and 38 individually matched normal controls, 8-16 years of age. The resulting profile of memory abilities in the children with autism was characterized by relatively poor memory for complex visual and verbal information and spatial working memory with relatively intact associative learning ability, verbal working memory, and recognition memory. A stepwise discriminant function analysis of the subtests found that the Finger Windows subtest, a measure of spatial working memory, discriminated most accurately between the autism and normal control groups. A principal components analysis indicated that the factor structure of the subtests differed substantially between the children with autism and controls, suggesting differing organizations of memory ability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pharmacotherapy in Autism and Related Disorders.

Autistic disorder is characterized by qualitative impairment in the areas of social interaction and communication, as well as stereotypic, repetitive patterns of behavior. In addition to the core features of autism, many individuals display a range of behavioral concerns including anxiety, aggression, agitation, overactivity, self-injury, and stereotypic behavior. Recent prevalence estimates indicate that over 45% of individuals with autism are prescribed psychotropic medications for management of associated behavioral disorders. Yet, there remain considerable gaps in our knowledge of medication efficacy and safety in this population. This article provides an overview of the research in this area, including efficacy and potential side effects of the most commonly prescribed psychotropic medications for children and adolescents with autism. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)