Rolison Max J, Naples Adam J, Rutherford Helena J V, McPartland James C
a Child Study Center , Yale School of Medicine , New Haven , CT , USA.
Soc Neurosci. 2018 Aug;13(4):416-428. doi: 10.1080/17470919.2017.1339635. Epub 2017 Jun 14.
Social neuroscience research investigating autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has yielded inconsistent findings, despite ASD being well-characterized by difficulties in social interaction and communication through behavioral observation. In particular, specific etiologies and functional and structural assays of the brain in autism have not been consistently identified. To date, most social neuroscience research has focused on a single person viewing static images. Research utilizing interactive social neuroscience featuring dual-brain recording offers great promise for the study of neurodevelopmental disabilities. Reward processing has been implicated in the pathology of ASD, yet mixed findings have brought uncertainty about the role reward processing deficits may play in ASD. The current study employed dual-brain EEG recording to examine reward processing during live interaction and its relation to autistic traits. Sixteen typically developing (TD) adults played a competitive treasure-hunt game against a computer and against a human partner. EEG results revealed enhanced neural sensitivity to reward outcome during live interaction with a human competitor. Further, individuals with higher levels of autistic traits demonstrated reduced sensitivity to reward outcome during live interaction. These findings provide novel insight into reward processing mechanisms associated with autistic traits, as well as support the necessary utility of interactive social neuroscience techniques to study developmental disorders.
尽管通过行为观察发现社交互动和沟通困难是自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）的显著特征，但研究ASD的社会神经科学研究结果却并不一致。特别是，自闭症的具体病因以及大脑的功能和结构检测尚未得到一致确认。迄今为止，大多数社会神经科学研究都集中在一个人观看静态图像上。利用具有双脑记录功能的交互式社会神经科学进行的研究为神经发育障碍的研究带来了巨大希望。奖励处理与ASD的病理有关，但研究结果不一，这使得奖励处理缺陷在ASD中可能扮演的角色存在不确定性。当前的研究采用双脑脑电图记录来检查实时互动过程中的奖励处理及其与自闭症特征的关系。16名发育正常（TD）的成年人与计算机和人类伙伴进行了一场竞争性寻宝游戏。脑电图结果显示，在与人类竞争者进行实时互动时，大脑对奖励结果的神经敏感性增强。此外，自闭症特征水平较高的个体在实时互动中对奖励结果的敏感性降低。这些发现为与自闭症特征相关的奖励处理机制提供了新的见解，也支持了交互式社会神经科学技术在研究发育障碍方面的必要实用性。
