More Autistic, More Altruistic? Autistic Traits and Equality Preference in Typically Developing Children

• In Event: Novel measurement and characterization of disability

Abstract

Background: While increasing evidence has proven autism to be a continuous personality trait ranging on a spectrum in the whole population (i.e., autistic traits), how such trait relates to social orientation, such as equality preference, in the TD population remains unknown. Previous studies on equality preference in autistic children found mixed results and did not exclude potential effects of interventions. Focusing on TD children helps rule out intervention effects and better understand the implication of such personality traits for one’s social orientation.

Objectives: The current study explored the association between autistic traits in TD children and their equality preference, specifically, how they react to advantageous inequality (AI) or disadvantageous inequality (DI). The study also examined attention allocation during the decision-making process using the eye-tracking technique to investigate the underlying cognitive processes.

Methods: Fifty-two 3- to 7-year-old TD children (22 girls, age: M = 5.56, SD = 0.84) participated in this study. They completed a computerized social decision-making game adapted from Fehr et al. (2008) and Williams and Moore (2016), in which they chose between an equal resource allocation (1, 1) and an unequal one between themselves and an anonymous partner. Four forced-choice conditions were included that differed in the unequal option: prosocial (1, 0), costly prosocial (2, 0), envy (1, 2), and costly envy (2,3). The former two examined AI preference whereas the latter two measured DI preference. During the task, participants’ choices and reaction time were recorded by the computer, and their eye movements were tracked with a Tobii X3-120 Eye Tracker. Children’s autistic traits were assessed using the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ).

Results: Controlling for age, gender, IQ, and single child effect, mixed effects logistic regressions revealed a significant interaction of AQ and inequality type (AI/DI): Children with higher AQ were more likely to reject advantages and choose the equal allocation but more likely to accept disadvantages and reject equal allocation, making more prosocial and costly prosocial choices and fewer envy choices (see Figure 1). Higher AQ predicts fewer total resources the participant received, and more total resources allocated to the partner. Children with higher AQ react more similarly to AI and DI, as shown by closer rates of choosing equality and reaction time. Eye-tracking data revealed that children with higher AQ are more likely to first look at what the partner would get and looks longer at what the partner would receive compared with lower AQ children.

Conclusions: We found that TD children with more autistic traits are less sensitive to inequalities and treated AI and DI more similarly, which may explain why both AI preference and DI preference were reported in previous studies with autistic children. As a result, they were explicitly “more altruistic and less selfish”. Their insensitivity to inequalities between themselves and others might be due to reduced care for themselves or reduced inner distinction between themselves and others, as indicated by eye tracking results. Future research should explore factors that mediate or modify the association to better understand its underlying mechanisms.

Authors

• Zihui Hua, Peking University
  Presenting Author

• Tianbi Li, Peking University

• Li Yi, Department of Psychology, Peking University