2020 |
Espinosa, L; Kleberg, Lundin J; Hofvander, B; Berggren, S; Bölte, S; Olsson, A Enhanced social learning of threat in adults with autism Journal Article Molecular Autism, 11 (71), 2020. Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: Anxiety, Attention, Autism, Eye tracking, Skin conductance, Social cognition, Social fear learning, Vicarious threat @article{Espinosa2020, title = {Enhanced social learning of threat in adults with autism}, author = {L Espinosa and J Lundin Kleberg and B Hofvander and S Berggren and S B\"{o}lte and A Olsson}, url = {https://link.springer.com/epdf/10.1186/s13229-020-00375-w}, doi = {10.1186/s13229-020-00375-w}, year = {2020}, date = {2020-09-24}, journal = {Molecular Autism}, volume = {11}, number = {71}, abstract = {Background: Recent theories have linked autism to challenges in prediction learning and social cognition. It is unknown, however, how autism affects learning about threats from others “demonstrators” through observation, which contains predictive learning based on social information. The aims of this study are therefore to investigate social fear learning in individual with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and to examine whether typically developing social cognition is necessary for successful observational learning. Methods: Adults with ASD (n = 23) and neurotypical controls (n = 25) completed a social fear learning (SFL) procedure in which participants watched a “demonstrator” receiving electrical shocks in conjunction with a previously neutral conditioned stimulus (CS+), but never with a safe control stimulus (CS−). Skin conductance was used to measure autonomic responses of learned threat responses to the CS+ versus CS−. Visual attention was measured during learning using eye tracking. To establish a non-social learning baseline, each participant also underwent a test of Pavlovian conditioning. Results: During learning, individuals with ASD attended less to the demonstrator’s face, and when later tested, displayed stronger observational, but not Pavlovian, autonomic indices of learning (skin conductance) compared to controls. In controls, both higher levels of attention to the demonstrator’s face and trait empathy predicted diminished expressions of learning during test. Limitations: The relatively small sample size of this study and the typical IQ range of the ASD group limit the generalizability of our findings to individuals with ASD in the average intellectual ability range. Conclusions: The enhanced social threat learning in individuals with ASD may be linked to difficulties using visual attention and mental state attributions to downregulate their emotion.}, keywords = {Anxiety, Attention, Autism, Eye tracking, Skin conductance, Social cognition, Social fear learning, Vicarious threat}, pubstate = {published}, tppubtype = {article} } Background: Recent theories have linked autism to challenges in prediction learning and social cognition. It is unknown, however, how autism affects learning about threats from others “demonstrators” through observation, which contains predictive learning based on social information. The aims of this study are therefore to investigate social fear learning in individual with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and to examine whether typically developing social cognition is necessary for successful observational learning. Methods: Adults with ASD (n = 23) and neurotypical controls (n = 25) completed a social fear learning (SFL) procedure in which participants watched a “demonstrator” receiving electrical shocks in conjunction with a previously neutral conditioned stimulus (CS+), but never with a safe control stimulus (CS−). Skin conductance was used to measure autonomic responses of learned threat responses to the CS+ versus CS−. Visual attention was measured during learning using eye tracking. To establish a non-social learning baseline, each participant also underwent a test of Pavlovian conditioning. Results: During learning, individuals with ASD attended less to the demonstrator’s face, and when later tested, displayed stronger observational, but not Pavlovian, autonomic indices of learning (skin conductance) compared to controls. In controls, both higher levels of attention to the demonstrator’s face and trait empathy predicted diminished expressions of learning during test. Limitations: The relatively small sample size of this study and the typical IQ range of the ASD group limit the generalizability of our findings to individuals with ASD in the average intellectual ability range. Conclusions: The enhanced social threat learning in individuals with ASD may be linked to difficulties using visual attention and mental state attributions to downregulate their emotion. |
Pärnamets, P; Olsson, A Integration of social cues and individual experiences during instrumental avoidance learning Journal Article PLOS Computational Biology, 16 (9), pp. e1008163, 2020. Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: Autism, Decision making, Emotions, Facial expressions, Fear, Fractals, Human learning, Learning @article{P\"{a}rnamets2020b, title = {Integration of social cues and individual experiences during instrumental avoidance learning}, author = {P P\"{a}rnamets and A Olsson}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008163}, year = {2020}, date = {2020-09-08}, journal = {PLOS Computational Biology}, volume = {16}, number = {9}, pages = {e1008163}, abstract = {Learning to avoid harmful consequences can be a costly trial-and-error process. In such situations, social information can be leveraged to improve individual learning outcomes. Here, we investigated how participants used their own experiences and others’ social cues to avoid harm. Participants made repeated choices between harmful and safe options, each with different probabilities of generating shocks, while also seeing the image of a social partner. Some partners made predictive gaze cues towards the harmful choice option while others cued an option at random, and did so using neutral or fearful facial expressions. We tested how learned social information about partner reliability transferred across contexts by letting participants encounter the same partner in multiple trial blocks while facing novel choice options. Participants’ decisions were best explained by a reinforcement learning model that independently learned the probabilities of options being safe and of partners being reliable and combined these combined these estimates to generate choices. Advice from partners making a fearful facial expression influenced participants’ decisions more than advice from partners with neutral expressions. Our results showed that participants made better decisions when facing predictive partners and that they cached and transferred partner reliability estimates into new blocks. Using simulations we show that participants’ transfer of social information into novel contexts is better adapted to variable social environments where social partners may change their cuing strategy or become untrustworthy. Finally, we found no relation between autism questionnaire scores and performance in our task, but do find autism trait related differences in learning rate parameters.}, keywords = {Autism, Decision making, Emotions, Facial expressions, Fear, Fractals, Human learning, Learning}, pubstate = {published}, tppubtype = {article} } Learning to avoid harmful consequences can be a costly trial-and-error process. In such situations, social information can be leveraged to improve individual learning outcomes. Here, we investigated how participants used their own experiences and others’ social cues to avoid harm. Participants made repeated choices between harmful and safe options, each with different probabilities of generating shocks, while also seeing the image of a social partner. Some partners made predictive gaze cues towards the harmful choice option while others cued an option at random, and did so using neutral or fearful facial expressions. We tested how learned social information about partner reliability transferred across contexts by letting participants encounter the same partner in multiple trial blocks while facing novel choice options. Participants’ decisions were best explained by a reinforcement learning model that independently learned the probabilities of options being safe and of partners being reliable and combined these combined these estimates to generate choices. Advice from partners making a fearful facial expression influenced participants’ decisions more than advice from partners with neutral expressions. Our results showed that participants made better decisions when facing predictive partners and that they cached and transferred partner reliability estimates into new blocks. Using simulations we show that participants’ transfer of social information into novel contexts is better adapted to variable social environments where social partners may change their cuing strategy or become untrustworthy. Finally, we found no relation between autism questionnaire scores and performance in our task, but do find autism trait related differences in learning rate parameters. |
2015 |
Kleberg, J L; Selbing, I; Lundqvist, D; Hofvander, B; Olsson, A Spontaneous eye movements and trait empathy predict vicarious learning of fear Journal Article International Journal of Psychophysiology, 98 (3), pp. 577–583, 2015. Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: Autism, Empathy, Eye movements, Fear conditioning, Obsfear procedure, Skin conductance, Social learning, Vicarious fear learning @article{Kleberg2015, title = {Spontaneous eye movements and trait empathy predict vicarious learning of fear}, author = {J L Kleberg and I Selbing and D Lundqvist and B Hofvander and A Olsson}, url = {http://www.emotionlab.se/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Kleberg-et-al-2015-1.pdf}, doi = {10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2015.04.001}, year = {2015}, date = {2015-04-11}, journal = {International Journal of Psychophysiology}, volume = {98}, number = {3}, pages = {577--583}, abstract = {Learning to predict dangerous outcomes is important to survival. In humans, this kind of learning is often transmitted through the observation of others' emotional responses. We analyzed eye movements during an observational/vicarious fear learning procedure, in which healthy participants (N = 33) watched another individual (‘learning model’) receiving aversive treatment (shocks) paired with a predictive conditioned stimulus (CS +), but not a control stimulus (CS −). Participants' gaze pattern towards the model differentiated as a function of whether the CS was predictive or not of a shock to the model. Consistent with our hypothesis that the face of a conspecific in distress can act as an unconditioned stimulus (US), we found that the total fixation time at a learning model's face increased when the CS + was shown. Furthermore, we found that the total fixation time at the CS + during learning predicted participants' conditioned responses (CRs) at a later test in the absence of the model. We also demonstrated that trait empathy was associated with stronger CRs, and that autistic traits were positively related to autonomic reactions to watching the model receiving the aversive treatment. Our results have implications for both healthy and dysfunctional socio-emotional learning.}, keywords = {Autism, Empathy, Eye movements, Fear conditioning, Obsfear procedure, Skin conductance, Social learning, Vicarious fear learning}, pubstate = {published}, tppubtype = {article} } Learning to predict dangerous outcomes is important to survival. In humans, this kind of learning is often transmitted through the observation of others' emotional responses. We analyzed eye movements during an observational/vicarious fear learning procedure, in which healthy participants (N = 33) watched another individual (‘learning model’) receiving aversive treatment (shocks) paired with a predictive conditioned stimulus (CS +), but not a control stimulus (CS −). Participants' gaze pattern towards the model differentiated as a function of whether the CS was predictive or not of a shock to the model. Consistent with our hypothesis that the face of a conspecific in distress can act as an unconditioned stimulus (US), we found that the total fixation time at a learning model's face increased when the CS + was shown. Furthermore, we found that the total fixation time at the CS + during learning predicted participants' conditioned responses (CRs) at a later test in the absence of the model. We also demonstrated that trait empathy was associated with stronger CRs, and that autistic traits were positively related to autonomic reactions to watching the model receiving the aversive treatment. Our results have implications for both healthy and dysfunctional socio-emotional learning. |
Under Review
2020 |
Espinosa, L; Kleberg, Lundin J; Hofvander, B; Berggren, S; Bölte, S; Olsson, A Enhanced social learning of threat in adults with autism Journal Article Molecular Autism, 11 (71), 2020. @article{Espinosa2020, title = {Enhanced social learning of threat in adults with autism}, author = {L Espinosa and J Lundin Kleberg and B Hofvander and S Berggren and S B\"{o}lte and A Olsson}, url = {https://link.springer.com/epdf/10.1186/s13229-020-00375-w}, doi = {10.1186/s13229-020-00375-w}, year = {2020}, date = {2020-09-24}, journal = {Molecular Autism}, volume = {11}, number = {71}, abstract = {Background: Recent theories have linked autism to challenges in prediction learning and social cognition. It is unknown, however, how autism affects learning about threats from others “demonstrators” through observation, which contains predictive learning based on social information. The aims of this study are therefore to investigate social fear learning in individual with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and to examine whether typically developing social cognition is necessary for successful observational learning. Methods: Adults with ASD (n = 23) and neurotypical controls (n = 25) completed a social fear learning (SFL) procedure in which participants watched a “demonstrator” receiving electrical shocks in conjunction with a previously neutral conditioned stimulus (CS+), but never with a safe control stimulus (CS−). Skin conductance was used to measure autonomic responses of learned threat responses to the CS+ versus CS−. Visual attention was measured during learning using eye tracking. To establish a non-social learning baseline, each participant also underwent a test of Pavlovian conditioning. Results: During learning, individuals with ASD attended less to the demonstrator’s face, and when later tested, displayed stronger observational, but not Pavlovian, autonomic indices of learning (skin conductance) compared to controls. In controls, both higher levels of attention to the demonstrator’s face and trait empathy predicted diminished expressions of learning during test. Limitations: The relatively small sample size of this study and the typical IQ range of the ASD group limit the generalizability of our findings to individuals with ASD in the average intellectual ability range. Conclusions: The enhanced social threat learning in individuals with ASD may be linked to difficulties using visual attention and mental state attributions to downregulate their emotion.}, keywords = {}, pubstate = {published}, tppubtype = {article} } Background: Recent theories have linked autism to challenges in prediction learning and social cognition. It is unknown, however, how autism affects learning about threats from others “demonstrators” through observation, which contains predictive learning based on social information. The aims of this study are therefore to investigate social fear learning in individual with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and to examine whether typically developing social cognition is necessary for successful observational learning. Methods: Adults with ASD (n = 23) and neurotypical controls (n = 25) completed a social fear learning (SFL) procedure in which participants watched a “demonstrator” receiving electrical shocks in conjunction with a previously neutral conditioned stimulus (CS+), but never with a safe control stimulus (CS−). Skin conductance was used to measure autonomic responses of learned threat responses to the CS+ versus CS−. Visual attention was measured during learning using eye tracking. To establish a non-social learning baseline, each participant also underwent a test of Pavlovian conditioning. Results: During learning, individuals with ASD attended less to the demonstrator’s face, and when later tested, displayed stronger observational, but not Pavlovian, autonomic indices of learning (skin conductance) compared to controls. In controls, both higher levels of attention to the demonstrator’s face and trait empathy predicted diminished expressions of learning during test. Limitations: The relatively small sample size of this study and the typical IQ range of the ASD group limit the generalizability of our findings to individuals with ASD in the average intellectual ability range. Conclusions: The enhanced social threat learning in individuals with ASD may be linked to difficulties using visual attention and mental state attributions to downregulate their emotion. |
Pärnamets, P; Olsson, A Integration of social cues and individual experiences during instrumental avoidance learning Journal Article PLOS Computational Biology, 16 (9), pp. e1008163, 2020. @article{P\"{a}rnamets2020b, title = {Integration of social cues and individual experiences during instrumental avoidance learning}, author = {P P\"{a}rnamets and A Olsson}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008163}, year = {2020}, date = {2020-09-08}, journal = {PLOS Computational Biology}, volume = {16}, number = {9}, pages = {e1008163}, abstract = {Learning to avoid harmful consequences can be a costly trial-and-error process. In such situations, social information can be leveraged to improve individual learning outcomes. Here, we investigated how participants used their own experiences and others’ social cues to avoid harm. Participants made repeated choices between harmful and safe options, each with different probabilities of generating shocks, while also seeing the image of a social partner. Some partners made predictive gaze cues towards the harmful choice option while others cued an option at random, and did so using neutral or fearful facial expressions. We tested how learned social information about partner reliability transferred across contexts by letting participants encounter the same partner in multiple trial blocks while facing novel choice options. Participants’ decisions were best explained by a reinforcement learning model that independently learned the probabilities of options being safe and of partners being reliable and combined these combined these estimates to generate choices. Advice from partners making a fearful facial expression influenced participants’ decisions more than advice from partners with neutral expressions. Our results showed that participants made better decisions when facing predictive partners and that they cached and transferred partner reliability estimates into new blocks. Using simulations we show that participants’ transfer of social information into novel contexts is better adapted to variable social environments where social partners may change their cuing strategy or become untrustworthy. Finally, we found no relation between autism questionnaire scores and performance in our task, but do find autism trait related differences in learning rate parameters.}, keywords = {}, pubstate = {published}, tppubtype = {article} } Learning to avoid harmful consequences can be a costly trial-and-error process. In such situations, social information can be leveraged to improve individual learning outcomes. Here, we investigated how participants used their own experiences and others’ social cues to avoid harm. Participants made repeated choices between harmful and safe options, each with different probabilities of generating shocks, while also seeing the image of a social partner. Some partners made predictive gaze cues towards the harmful choice option while others cued an option at random, and did so using neutral or fearful facial expressions. We tested how learned social information about partner reliability transferred across contexts by letting participants encounter the same partner in multiple trial blocks while facing novel choice options. Participants’ decisions were best explained by a reinforcement learning model that independently learned the probabilities of options being safe and of partners being reliable and combined these combined these estimates to generate choices. Advice from partners making a fearful facial expression influenced participants’ decisions more than advice from partners with neutral expressions. Our results showed that participants made better decisions when facing predictive partners and that they cached and transferred partner reliability estimates into new blocks. Using simulations we show that participants’ transfer of social information into novel contexts is better adapted to variable social environments where social partners may change their cuing strategy or become untrustworthy. Finally, we found no relation between autism questionnaire scores and performance in our task, but do find autism trait related differences in learning rate parameters. |
2015 |
Kleberg, J L; Selbing, I; Lundqvist, D; Hofvander, B; Olsson, A Spontaneous eye movements and trait empathy predict vicarious learning of fear Journal Article International Journal of Psychophysiology, 98 (3), pp. 577–583, 2015. @article{Kleberg2015, title = {Spontaneous eye movements and trait empathy predict vicarious learning of fear}, author = {J L Kleberg and I Selbing and D Lundqvist and B Hofvander and A Olsson}, url = {http://www.emotionlab.se/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Kleberg-et-al-2015-1.pdf}, doi = {10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2015.04.001}, year = {2015}, date = {2015-04-11}, journal = {International Journal of Psychophysiology}, volume = {98}, number = {3}, pages = {577--583}, abstract = {Learning to predict dangerous outcomes is important to survival. In humans, this kind of learning is often transmitted through the observation of others' emotional responses. We analyzed eye movements during an observational/vicarious fear learning procedure, in which healthy participants (N = 33) watched another individual (‘learning model’) receiving aversive treatment (shocks) paired with a predictive conditioned stimulus (CS +), but not a control stimulus (CS −). Participants' gaze pattern towards the model differentiated as a function of whether the CS was predictive or not of a shock to the model. Consistent with our hypothesis that the face of a conspecific in distress can act as an unconditioned stimulus (US), we found that the total fixation time at a learning model's face increased when the CS + was shown. Furthermore, we found that the total fixation time at the CS + during learning predicted participants' conditioned responses (CRs) at a later test in the absence of the model. We also demonstrated that trait empathy was associated with stronger CRs, and that autistic traits were positively related to autonomic reactions to watching the model receiving the aversive treatment. Our results have implications for both healthy and dysfunctional socio-emotional learning.}, keywords = {}, pubstate = {published}, tppubtype = {article} } Learning to predict dangerous outcomes is important to survival. In humans, this kind of learning is often transmitted through the observation of others' emotional responses. We analyzed eye movements during an observational/vicarious fear learning procedure, in which healthy participants (N = 33) watched another individual (‘learning model’) receiving aversive treatment (shocks) paired with a predictive conditioned stimulus (CS +), but not a control stimulus (CS −). Participants' gaze pattern towards the model differentiated as a function of whether the CS was predictive or not of a shock to the model. Consistent with our hypothesis that the face of a conspecific in distress can act as an unconditioned stimulus (US), we found that the total fixation time at a learning model's face increased when the CS + was shown. Furthermore, we found that the total fixation time at the CS + during learning predicted participants' conditioned responses (CRs) at a later test in the absence of the model. We also demonstrated that trait empathy was associated with stronger CRs, and that autistic traits were positively related to autonomic reactions to watching the model receiving the aversive treatment. Our results have implications for both healthy and dysfunctional socio-emotional learning. |