| Previous studies have shown that individuals with autism spectrum disorders and individuals with high levels of autistic traits show some degree of empathic impairment when viewing static stimuli of others’ pain,and that the level of autistic traits is one of the factors that affect pain empathy.In addition to this,stimulus modality is also a factor that affects pain empathy.Currently,there are no studies that have used dynamic stimuli to explore the empathic responses of individuals with autistic traits.In the present study,the relationship between autistic traits and pain empathy and its cognitive neural mechanisms were explored in a three-part recursive manner,and the differences in the results between dynamic and static pain stimuli were also explored.In Study 1,a questionnaire was used to initially explore the correlation between pain empathy and autistic traits in preparation for further research.In this study,300 subjects were recruited to fill out the autism quotient questionnaire,and subjects were also asked to rate the pain empathy picture questionnaire on a 9-point Likert scale,and the subjects’ autism quotient questionnaire scores were correlated with pain empathy scores for analysis.The results showed a significant negative correlation between the autism quotient questionnaire scores and pain empathy scores,indicating that the higher the individual’s autism quotient questionnaire scores,the lower the pain scores,and that autistic traits can have an effect on pain empathy.In Study 2,a behavioral experiment was used to explore the effect of autistic traits on pain empathy,and stimulus modality was included in the study to investigate whether autistic traits and stimulus modality have an effect on pain empathy.The study first recruited 529 subjects and used the Autism Quotient Questionnaire to quantify their autistic traits.The top and bottom 10% of the Autism Quotient Questionnaire scores were divided into a high autistic trait group and a low autistic trait group,and 30(half of each gender)were randomly selected for the behavioral experiment.The subjects were required to rate the pain level and emotional validity of the viewed stimulus material,while their reaction time,correctness,and subjective rating scores.A three-factor mixed design of 2(stimulus modality: dynamic stimulus,static stimulus)× 2(pain type: pain,non-pain)× 2(group: high autistic trait,low autistic trait)was used.Results revealed that the high autistic trait and low autistic trait groups had shorter reaction times and higher correctness rates to painful stimuli and higher pain level scores and lower emotional validity scores,but the differences between the two groups did not reach statistically significant values in the behavioral data.In Study 3,it was further explored whether autistic traits and stimulus modality would have an impact on the cognitive neural mechanisms of pain empathy.Using the same subject selection criteria,the high autistic trait and low autistic trait groups were asked to press keys in response to viewed painful dynamic and static stimulus materials,and their keystroke responses,reaction times,correct rates,and EEG amplitudes were recorded to explore the cognitive neural mechanisms underlying the effects of autistic traits on pain empathy using the event-related potential technique.It was found that individuals with high autistic traits evoked greater P2 wave amplitude when viewing painful static stimuli compared to individuals with low autistic traits,while no difference was found between the high and low autistic trait groups for painful dynamic stimuli,which may be due to the inability of individuals with high autistic traits to understand the meaning of others’ actions when viewing painful static stimuli,resulting in difficulty in processing painful static stimuli and consuming more mental resources.The above results suggest that individuals with high autistic traits differ in their neural responses and cognitive processing when faced with different types of painful stimuli.Individuals with high autistic traits may require more information and time to understand others’ pain states,especially when processing static pain stimuli.This difference may be related to dysfunction of the mirror neuron system and the emotion regulation system,which are closely related to social cognition and emotion processing.Thus,individuals with high autistic traits may take longer to process the pain states of others,and they require more cognitive resources to understand and respond.These findings provide new insights into the neurobiological mechanisms underlying autism spectrum disorders and alert to the need for greater attention to the needs of individuals with high autistic traits in medical and social interactions. |
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