Researchers report that from the age of 12 neurotypical children integrate outside influences into perceptual decisions, unlike autistic children. The age at which social influences begin to bias children’s decisions remains unclear. Kristine Krug and colleagues examined behavioral data of 125 neurotypical children and 30 autistic children 6 -14 years of age. The children were asked to pretend to navigate a spaceship by judging the rotation direction of black holes. Before making each decision, the children were shown a video of an “advisor” who was either a child or an adult. Sensory elements of the task, such as depth perception, affected the decisions of both autistic and neurotypical children across all age groups. However, the decisions of neurotypical children between 12-14 years of age shifted in the direction of the advisor’s opinion, even when the advisor provided incorrect advice. Compared with neurotypical children, autistic children made decisions that were less influenced by others’ opinions. Autistic children also outperformed neurotypical children, who were slower to make decisions when given incorrect advice. The results may explain different social interaction patterns for autistic and neurotypical children, according to the authors.

Article #18-08153: “Developmental trajectory of social influence integration into perceptual decisions in children,” by Imogen Large, Elizabeth Pellicano, Andreas Mojzisch, and Kristine Krug.