An automated electronic method for quantifying spinning (circling) in children with autistic disorder

Abstract

This pilot study examined and quantified rotational asymmetry (the tendency to turn preferentially to the right or left side). An automated device was used to measure turning (circling) in 9 children with autism and 27 normal control subjects and confirmed clinical observations of stereotypical spinning behavior in patients with autism. This behavior was significantly preferential toward the left side relative to control subjects (P = 0.0009, two-tailed). Group membership accounted for approximately 40% of variance. Although the precise causes of autism are not known, these preliminary data suggest that the spinning behavior often seen in children with neurodevelopmental disorders can be reliably measured. Furthermore, spinning in autism may most often manifest as specific right-hemispace neglect.

Rating scale measures are associated with Noldus EthoVision-XT video tracking of behaviors of children on the autism spectrum

“…Based on the work of Bracha et al [1], we had expected RAV to be linked with ratings of stereotyped behaviors in the ASD group. These authors reported that spinning in children with ASD had a left turn bias which they attributed to right sided neglect.…”

“…Automated devices to detect stereotypic behaviors, for example, have been shown to be a promising alternative to rating scales, as this minimizes the role of human decision making and can provide much more quantitative and dynamic information [1,2]. Further, eye tracking devices have yielded important information relevant to both early detection [3] and toward understanding the nature of the social deficits in autism [4].…”

“…Measurements were taken in a free play situation before and after diagnostic evaluations with the Autism Diagnostic Observation Scale-Generic (ADOS-G) [8] and consisted of quantifying the amount of time spent near the parent or near the periphery, as well as the average speed and direction of turning of the child’s body during the observation. The latter was of interest because of an automated study of stereotyped spinning behavior in people with ASD, which indicated that such spinning had a left turn bias [1], and because of the often reported observations of atypical lateralization in ASD.…”

Understanding social engagement in autism: being different in perceiving and sharing affordances

“…In triadic interactions involving an object, the fact that two partners perceive different affordances of the object may also lead to less smooth interactions. Preference for producing or observing spinning or rotating movements (spinning objects, watching washing machine rotating, spinning wheels of toy cars) is for instance common in children with ASD (Bracha et al, 1995). If one child is for instance continuously spinning the wheels of a toy car while the other child is “driving” the car, this will probably decrease the amount of social interaction between the children.…”

Childrens’ left-turning preference is not modulated by magical ideation

“…The last-mentioned author group reported that the left-ward turning preference of dance-naïve children shifted to a right-ward preference in professional young dance students (mean age = 11.9 ± 1.1years; N = 36). One more study investigated circling behavior (spinning around) in children with autism (Bracha, Livingston, Dykman, Edwards, & Adam, 1995) and found a significant left-ward bias, which was absent, however, in the control group of 27 healthy elementary school children (average age of 6 years). In the present study we aimed to further explore turning bias in a large sample of children, both girls and boys.…”