TY - JOUR
T1 - Motor Imagery in Asperger Syndrome
T2 - Testing Action Simulation by the Hand Laterality Task
AU - Conson, Massimiliano
AU - Mazzarella, Elisabetta
AU - Frolli, Alessandro
AU - Esposito, Dalila
AU - Marino, Nicoletta
AU - Trojano, Luigi
AU - Massagli, Angelo
AU - Gison, Giovanna
AU - Aprea, Nellantonio
AU - Grossi, Dario
PY - 2013/7/23
Y1 - 2013/7/23
N2 - Asperger syndrome (AS) is a neurodevelopmental condition within the Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) characterized by specific difficulties in social interaction, communication and behavioural control. In recent years, it has been suggested that ASD is related to a dysfunction of action simulation processes, but studies employing imitation or action observation tasks provided mixed results. Here, we addressed action simulation processes in adolescents with AS by means of a motor imagery task, the classical hand laterality task (to decide whether a rotated hand image is left or right); mental rotation of letters was also evaluated. As a specific marker of action simulation in hand rotation, we assessed the so-called biomechanical effect, that is the advantage for judging hand pictures showing physically comfortable versus physically awkward positions. We found the biomechanical effect in typically-developing participants but not in participants with AS. Overall performance on both hand laterality and letter rotation tasks, instead, did not differ in the two groups. These findings demonstrated a specific alteration of motor imagery skills in AS. We suggest that impaired mental simulation and imitation of goal-less movements in ASD could be related to shared cognitive mechanisms.
AB - Asperger syndrome (AS) is a neurodevelopmental condition within the Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) characterized by specific difficulties in social interaction, communication and behavioural control. In recent years, it has been suggested that ASD is related to a dysfunction of action simulation processes, but studies employing imitation or action observation tasks provided mixed results. Here, we addressed action simulation processes in adolescents with AS by means of a motor imagery task, the classical hand laterality task (to decide whether a rotated hand image is left or right); mental rotation of letters was also evaluated. As a specific marker of action simulation in hand rotation, we assessed the so-called biomechanical effect, that is the advantage for judging hand pictures showing physically comfortable versus physically awkward positions. We found the biomechanical effect in typically-developing participants but not in participants with AS. Overall performance on both hand laterality and letter rotation tasks, instead, did not differ in the two groups. These findings demonstrated a specific alteration of motor imagery skills in AS. We suggest that impaired mental simulation and imitation of goal-less movements in ASD could be related to shared cognitive mechanisms.
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U2 - 10.1371/journal.pone.0070734
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0070734
M3 - Article
C2 - 23894683
AN - SCOPUS:84880737154
VL - 8
JO - PLoS One
JF - PLoS One
SN - 1932-6203
IS - 7
M1 - e70734
ER -