Event Title
Correlation of Block Design Task Proficiency and Dorsal Pathway White Matter Integrity in Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Faculty Sponsor
Tracey Knaus
College(s)
College of Sciences
Submission Type
Poster
Description
Superior performance on block design tasks, an assessment of visuospatial abilities, is reported in individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This proficiency supports the weak central coherence theory (WCC) as a feature of information processing in ASD. The dorsal pathway, commonly referred to as the “where” pathway, is thought to be used to recognize where objects are in space. The purpose of this study was to determine whether proficiencies in the block design tasks correlated with white matter integrity of the dorsal pathway. Twelve right-handed boys with ASD (mean=14.0, SD=1.6) and 12 typically developing right-handed boys (mean=13.6, SD=1.5), 12-16 years old, completed the WISC-III and MRI and DTI scans to evaluate the integrity of the dorsal pathway. We hypothesized that block design performance would be better in the ASD group than controls. We also predicted that better block design performance would be associated with stronger connectivity of the dorsal pathway, particularly in the right hemisphere. Results are pending final analysis.
Correlation of Block Design Task Proficiency and Dorsal Pathway White Matter Integrity in Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Superior performance on block design tasks, an assessment of visuospatial abilities, is reported in individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This proficiency supports the weak central coherence theory (WCC) as a feature of information processing in ASD. The dorsal pathway, commonly referred to as the “where” pathway, is thought to be used to recognize where objects are in space. The purpose of this study was to determine whether proficiencies in the block design tasks correlated with white matter integrity of the dorsal pathway. Twelve right-handed boys with ASD (mean=14.0, SD=1.6) and 12 typically developing right-handed boys (mean=13.6, SD=1.5), 12-16 years old, completed the WISC-III and MRI and DTI scans to evaluate the integrity of the dorsal pathway. We hypothesized that block design performance would be better in the ASD group than controls. We also predicted that better block design performance would be associated with stronger connectivity of the dorsal pathway, particularly in the right hemisphere. Results are pending final analysis.
Comments
1st place, Oral Presentation (Tie)