Susan Furth, MD, PhD Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer | Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Susan Furth, MD, PhD Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer | Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Researchers at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) have discovered that both neurotypical and autistic girls tend to smile more than their male counterparts. This finding was published in the journal Autism and highlights sex-based differences in social-emotional behavior among autistic individuals.
The study from CHOP's Center for Autism Research (CAR) aims to address the challenges faced by females who are often misdiagnosed or misunderstood due to traditional autism diagnostic models, which are primarily based on male behaviors. "Smiling is one social cue that is associated with particularly strong gender biases," explained Casey Zampella, PhD, a psychologist and scientist at CAR. Zampella noted that women are generally socialized to be more emotionally expressive, especially as they age.
To explore these differences, researchers used computer vision technology to analyze video interactions between autistic and neurotypical youth. The study involved 60 autistic individuals (20 female) and 67 neurotypical individuals (25 female). The analysis focused on factors such as the degree of smiling, smile quality, changes in smiling, and its impact on interaction quality.
The results showed that females smiled more than males across both groups. Autistic youth were found to smile less frequently and less prototypically compared to their neurotypical peers. Interestingly, the link between smile activity and interaction quality was more pronounced in males but not statistically significant.
"This study has important implications for how we think about autistic traits in the context of gendered societal norms," said Zampella. She emphasized the need for increased female representation in autism research and designs that compare autistic females' behavior with neurotypical females rather than males.
John Herrington, PhD, senior author of the study and Co-Director of CAR's Developmental Neuroimaging Program at CHOP stated: "The Center for Autism Research continues to be committed to increasing understanding of how to best support all autistic people."
This research received support from grants provided by the National Institute of Mental Health and the Eagles Autism Foundation.
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