AUTHOR=Becchio Cristina , Castiello Umberto TITLE=Visuomotor resonance in autism spectrum disorders JOURNAL=Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience VOLUME=Volume 6 - 2012 YEAR=2012 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/integrative-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnint.2012.00110 DOI=10.3389/fnint.2012.00110 ISSN=1662-5145 ABSTRACT=

When we observe the actions performed by others, our motor system “resonates” along with that of the observed agent. Is a similar visuomotor resonant response observed in autism spectrum disorders (ASD)? Studies investigating action observation in ASD have yielded inconsistent findings. In this perspective article we examine behavioral and neuroscientific evidence in favor of visuomotor resonance in ASD, and consider the possible role of action-perception coupling in social cognition. We distinguish between different aspects of visuomotor resonance and conclude that while some aspects may be preserved in ASD, abnormalities exist in the way individuals with ASD convert visual information from observed actions into a program for motor execution. Such abnormalities, we surmise, may contribute to but also depend on the difficulties that individuals with ASD encounter during social interaction.