Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

2020

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Jones, Nancy Aaron

Abstract

The present study aimed to gain a better understanding of the emotion processing abilities of children between the ages of 4 and 8 with ASD by examining their ability to correctly recognize dynamic displays of emotion. Additionally, we examined whether children with ASD showed emotion specific differences in their ability to accurately identify anger, happiness, sadness, and fear. Participants viewed a continuous display of neutral faces morphing into expressions of emotion. We aimed to measure observed power and asymmetry using EEG data in order to understand the neural activity that underlies the social aspects of ASD. Participants with ASD showed slower processing speed and decreased emotion sensitivity. On tasks that involved the recognition of expressions on the participants’ mothers’ faces, differences were less apparent. These results suggest that children with ASD are capable of recognizing facial displays of emotion after repeated exposure, this should be explored further in future research.

Extent

65 p.

Comments

Includes bibliography.|Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2020.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography.

Identifier

FA00013463

Format

pdf

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