Lecture 8 - Sensorimotor Development Flashcards
Outline Piagets Sensorimotor stage
0-2 years
Explores through direct sensory and motor contact
Object permanence and separation anxiety
Key stage
Automatic
Outline Piagets Preoperational stage
2-6 years Uses symbols (words and images) represent objects Does not reason logically Ability to pretend Egocentric
Outline Piagets Concrete Operational Stage
6-12 years
Think logically
Add and subtract
Understands conversation
Outline Piagets Formal Operational Stage
12 years - adult
Reason abstractly
Think hypothetically
What are the stages that Gowen and Hamilton 2013 suggest
- Sensory Systems
- State Estimation
- Inverse Model
- Forward Model
- Motor Execution
Outline Gowen and Hamilton’s 2013 Sensory Systems first stage
See image, sense space
Proprioception = understanding where body is in space
Vision
Outline Gowen and Hamilton’s 2013 Second stage of State Estimation
Specifies Task relevant information help make a decision
Outline Gowen and Hamilton’s 2013 third stage of Inverse Model
Desired state of world
Planning/Control
Planning process. Figure out from current motion what you want to achieve
—> inefficient as our sensory system is slow
Outline Gowen and Hamilton’s 2013 fourth stage Forward Model
Predictor
Takes copy of motor demand and generates prediction of sensory output
Sensory motor integration
Outline Gowen and Hamilton’s 2013 fifth stage Motor Execution
Converted muscle activity to form motor execution
Constant sensory feedback
What can go wrong in Gowen and Hamilton’s 2013 stages
Sensory systems - atypical vision or proprioception. Can’t create accurate self-estimation and select relevant task info
Forward Model - need continuous error checked. Difficulty if incident is surprise/unexpected
Inverse Model - difficulty motor planning
Outline Autism Spectrum Disorder as a disorder of Sensorimotor Development
Pronounced difficulties in communication, socialisation
Narrow interests
Repetitive behaviours. Sensory hypersensitivity
Outline Developmental Coordination Disorder/Dyspraxia as a disorder of Sensorimotor Development
Pronounced difficulties: selection, timing and spatial organisation of purposeful movement and coordination
Social anxiety, social and communication skills
What does Autism and Dyspraxia both encompass
Sensory and motor difficulties
Outline Cassidy et al 2016 on Dyspraxia and Autism
Autism not categorical or dimensional but a continuum. All place somewhere.
Adults autism more like have DCD 7% than general population 0.8%
Pronounced sensory motor difficulties in autism
Adults DCD higher autistic traits and lower empathy
Outline Motor Difficulties in Autism
General clumsiness 80% have motor difficulties 10% borderline Present from early infancy Tend be reported by parents as first area of concern at 15 months
Outline impact of motor difficulties
Difficulties in Imitation Speech sound production Emotion recognition Anxiety in response to social interaction Important social development
Outline sensory difficulties in autism
Part current diagnostic criteria for autism
Sensory intrusions
High prevalence in autism 65-95%
Proprioceptive impairment - determine where body is in space
Increased SU aesthetic - one sensory modality triggers another
Superior visual processing of detail
Difficulties processing motion biological vs non-biological
Contradictory - intact form but deficits in motion processing?
Impact of sensory difficulties
Difficulties social and communication skills. Associated sensory reactivity.
Core feature autism and associated repetitive behaviours.
Insistence sameness and repetitive motor movements
Intolerance uncertainty
Restrictive, repetitive behaviours are calming, help with anxiety
Summary on sensory and motor difficulties in Autism
Associated social and communication skills
Related and impact on anxiety and tolerance of uncertainty
Intrinsically connected
Increase likelihood diagnosis 3 years
Outline Sensorimotor integration in autism
Less accurate moving eyes to new target
Slow initiative eye movement
Difficulties coordinating hand and eye movement
Explain delay in looking to social cues and downstream effects on social and communication ability
Outline the rubber hand experiment by Cascio et al 2012
Fake and real hand which are covered
Can’t tell which is yours and which is fake
Poke fake hand attribute it to own hand
Outline the rubber hand experiment by Cascio et al 2012 results on autistic participants
Children autism less susceptible
Reduced ability integrate visual and tactile info
Adults autism did experience illusion but were less sensitive to visual-tactile discrepancies
Less proprioceptive drift to rubber hand
Outline Sensorimotor integration in autism
Difficulties incorporating visual info into motor learning in autism
Presence of visual distractor did not impact performance in children with autism
Less able correct movements from visual compared proprioceptive feedback
Difficulties with motor movements require integrating visual cues or other sensory signals
Direct vs Mirror drawing Salowitz, Eccarius, Karst et al 2013
Direct drawings no difference autism vs non-autistic
Mirror drawings autistic children struggle
Summary of sensory inputs in autistic children
Do not tend incorporate other sensory inputs, particularly visual feedback in motor learning
Difficulty coordinating visual and motor movements
Impaired forward Model, lacking accuracy and flexibility
Modifying the forward Model
Autistic people can learn new motor skills but takes longer
Improve with age
E.g. adults more susceptible to rubber hand illusion
Outline Biological Basis to autism
Key role: Cerebellum
Saccadic accuracy connected error-reducing function of cerebellum
Cerebellum volume associated difficulties incorporating visual cues in motor learning
Contains pathways link sensory and motor pathways in brain
Abnormalities in those with autism
Decreased activation in cerebellum during motor tasks in autism
Where does Sensorimotor integration occur
Purkinje cells in cerebellum - Sensorimotor neurons
Neurotypical - efficient synthesis of GABA. Sufficient receptors for GABA
Autism - inefficient synthesis of GABA. Limited receptors for GABA. More glutamic acid.
Impact of Sensorimotor difficulties in autism. Difficulties in:
Accuracy, speed and initiation eye movements
Coordination eye and body
Integrating visual and tactile info
Integrating visual info into motor learning, increased reliance on proprioception
Social learning opportunities
Repetitive motor mannerisms - insistence sameness
Can autistic adults benefit from psychological therapy?
Yes - Anderberg et al 2017
Treat mental health difficulties e.g. anxiety
But it takes much longer, and prefer predictable routines
What is the Sensorimotor theory
Sensory and motor difficulties first area concern early development
14.7 months prior obtaining autism diagnosis
More likely diagnosed autism aged 3
Explain development and maintenance autism
Summary of the different aspects of autism
Sustained unusual or repetitive play Uneven physical or verbal skills Inappropriate response or no response to sound Insistence on sameness Difficulty in interacting with others Echoes words or phrases Spins objects or self Inappropriate laughing/giggling
