This study investigated the neurocognitive bases underlying social difficulties in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Researchers used a 'trans-diagnostic' approach, combining personality assessments, social trait judgments of faces, and neurophysiology. They found that while ASD and neurotypical participants didn't differ significantly in empathy, prosociality, antisociality, or social agreeableness, ASD participants showed a weaker association between prosocial personality dimensions and judgments of facial trustworthiness and warmth. Neurophysiological data also revealed a weaker association between neuronal representations of trustworthiness and warmth from faces in the ASD group. These findings suggest that atypical associations between social-affective personality and social trait judgments from faces may contribute to social and affective difficulties in ASD.

Hongbo Yu, Runnan Cao, Chujun Lin, Shuo Wang