ASD-CARC :: Research Project: EEG Studies

EEG Study

Faces provide many important social cues, and open up avenues of communication. Typically developing people look at faces in predictable ways, for example focusing on the eyes. Their brains also react to seeing faces in predictable ways which are connected to the chemicals in their brains and the genes that control these chemicals. People with autism spectrum disorders have different ways of looking at faces, for example they tend to focus more on the mouth region. Their brains also react differently to seeing faces. It is not clear whether this is related to their genes or not.

In this study we would like to find out whether the way that people with ASD look at faces and the way their brain reacts to faces is related to their genes. There are two components to participating in this study: collecting your genes and measuring the way your brain reacts to faces.

In order to collect your genes, we need a sample of saliva or spit. You will be asked to spit into a tube – a little embarrassing but not painful at all.

An electroencephalogram (EEG) will record how your brain reacts to seeing faces. A hairnet containing 128 little sensors will be put on your head. These will record the electrical activity of your brain. The hairnet has to be a little bit wet in order to work, but other than being a little damp it does not hurt. Once the hairnet is in place, you will be asked to watch a TV monitor as it shows you pictures either of faces, objects, or animals. You will be asked to look at all of the pictures carefully, and click a spacebar each time you see an animal. The whole procedure lasts no more than forty minutes.

Because we are interested in genes, and genes are passed through families, we are also interested in working with immediate family members of people with ASD, and of course all good science needs to compare results with typically developing people as well, so if you’re interested I am sure that we can work with you. We are currently only working with people over the age of 8, and with corrected-to-normal vision (contacts or glasses are fine). Verbal ability is not a prerequisite so long as the hairnet can be tolerated.

If you have any questions or would like to participate, please do not hesitate to contact Dr. Jessica Ward at autism.research@queensu.ca