Grant: Master's Award: Canada Graduate Scholarships

Autism is recognized as the most common neurological disorders affecting children and one of the most common developmental disabilities in Canada. It has been associated with early deficits in joint attention, which may underlie later difficulties in comprehending the intentions of others and general social interaction. During infancy, attention is more likely to be drawn to an event or object when both visual and auditory cues are used to elicit it (relative to the use visual or auditory cues alone). We want to determine whether the addition of simultaneous and convergent haptic (touch) cues can be used direct attention in the context of tasks requiring social interaction. This study will use an innovative vest designed to deliver haptic stimulation in conjunction with the pattern of a caregiver's speech. Examining the effects of various degrees of multimodal stimulation in infants with suspected Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) will help our understanding of the joint attention deficit in ASD, as well as providing a new avenue for research into potential multimodal interventions for this population.