Unifying insights into individual differences observed in Autism

Background

Autism is a heterogeneous condition characterized by a wide spectrum of neural, cognitive and behavioural profiles across individuals. Some of these phenotypes include increased propensity for coexisting psychiatric conditions such as ADHD, anxiety disorders, or depression. A better characterization of this heterogeneity is crucial for improving our understanding of autism and for tailoring interventions to individual needs. Past research has mainly focussed on the variability in social cognitive functioning, including difficulties with social interaction and communication, which can affect social relationships. While social deficits and their variability across autistic individuals are crucially informing diagnostic and intervention approaches - it may be equally important to understand the heterogeneity in other cognitive domains, in which autistic individuals may exhibit unique strengths, which may be related to unique personality traits and broader dimensions. Taken together, understanding the heterogeneity of the autism spectrum is crucial to better characterize autism, and gain a better understanding of individual differences in autistic traits and neurodiversity in general. This Special Collection aims to feature theoretical and empirical insights into the heterogeneity of cognitive profiles in autism as well as individual differences in autistic traits in the general population, why and how these emerge, as well as unify these concepts into contemporary and inclusive models of autism.

Aims and Scope

The goal of this Special Collection is to explore individual differences in autism by featuring a large diversity of perspectives, methods and research questions. More specifically, this Special Collection emphasizes the need for a comprehensive integration of multiple levels of analysis, including functional and structural neuroimaging, social cognitive assessments, eye-tracking, naturalistic behaviour, computational models, molecular and genetic approaches, self-report measures, and clinical interviews, to capture the complex manifestations of (social) cognitive profiles and personality structures across the autism spectrum. By showcasing a diversity of perspectives and approaches all aiming to characterize heterogeneity in autism, this Special Collection strives to inspire collaborative efforts, foster interdisciplinary research, and ultimately pave the way for an improved understanding and diagnosis of autism subtypes and their dissociation from coexisting mental health conditions, as well as more effective and tailored interventions.

We welcome submissions across a range of different article types (Empirical, Theoretical Review - including Meta-analysis, Brief Research Reports, Short communications, and Letters) on the heterogeneity of autism, with a focus on individual differences in (but not limited to):

• Social cognition
• Information processing
• Brain signals or structure
• Psychiatric symptom dimensions
• Genetic markers
• Sex and gender differences
• Age and developmental trajectories
• Subtypes and severity levels of autism
• Neurodiversity in the general population
• Focus and creativity in autism/ Associations between autistic traits and creativity domains
• Autistic traits and their relationship to personality structure
• Cultural differences in autism phenotypes and diagnoses

We hope for articles to showcase more recent methodologies as well classical techniques and highlighting their applications in studying the neurobiology of personality, including but not limited to:

• Neuroimaging - such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), positron emission tomography (PET), and electroencephalography (EEG)
• Structural Imaging Techniques
• Molecular Approaches
• Psychophysiological Measures
• Naturalistic Behavioural Assessments
• Self-report and Clinical Assessments
• Computational Cognitive Modelling
• Machine Learning

Submission Guidelines 

Each submission will undergo a rigorous peer-review process, ensuring that accepted papers contribute substantially to the field's knowledge base. If you are interested in submitting a paper to this Special Issue, all manuscripts need to be submitted no later than January 2025 via the Personality Neuroscience submission and peer review system.

For detailed manuscript preparation instructions and submission guidelines, please refer to the journal Instructions for Authors.

If you have any questions or comments please do not hesitate to contact any one of the Guest Editors.

Guest Editors:

• Assistant Prof. Caroline Charpentier, Department of Psychology, University of Maryland College Park, College Park, USA ([email protected]) 
• Assistant Prof. Gabriela Rosenblau, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, The George Washington University, Washington DC, USA ([email protected])
• Dr. Agnieszka Pluta, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland ([email protected])