Skip to main content
ABCT 2023 Annual Convention Main banner
Final Program


Program Flipbook
Icon Legend
This session is not in your schedule.
This session is in your schedule. Click again to remove it.
Presentation Icons
Ticketed Session
Ticketed Session
Recorded Session
Recorded Session
Back

Child / Adolescent - Externalizing

Examining Eye-Gaze Patterns during Facial Emotional Recognition in Children with Callous-Unemotional Traits, ADHD symptoms and Conduct Problems: An Eye-Tracking Study

(PS4-B32) Examining Eye-gaze Patterns During Facial Emotional Recognition in Children with Callous-unemotional Traits, ADHD Symptoms and Conduct Problems: An Eye-tracking Study

Friday, November 17, 2023
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM PST
Location: Regency Ballroom, Level 7
The current study aims to investigate hypothesized attention deficits in the eye region during facial emotional recognition (FER) in children with Callous Unemotional (CU) traits, Conduct Problems (CP), and/or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) inattention symptoms, using eye-tracking technology. Previous research indicates that deficient FER is positively associated with CU-traits, ADHD inattention symptoms, and CP (Cooper et al., 2020; Romani et al., 2018). Theoretical models suggested that this deficit is linked to a lack of attention to the eye region of emotional faces (Dadds et al., 2008; Demetriou & Fanti, 2022; Frick et al., 2022). However, little is known about the eye gaze patterns of children with these traits, particularly in relation to commonly cooccurring attention and conduct problems. Based on current theory and evidence, we hypothesized that CU-traits will be uniquely associated with reduced visual attention to the eye region, whereas CPs reflect interpretive but not necessarily attention biases, and ADHD is associated with poorer attention regulation including reduced focus on pertinent regions conveying emotion (e.g., eyes). To date, a racially diverse sample of children aged from 6 to 11 (N = 53, 70% Male, age M = 8.55, 47% Black and other minority groups) completed a computerized FER task displaying a series of faces expressing six emotions (anger, disgust, fear, happy, neutral, & sad) while visual attention was measured using a Tobii Pro eye tracker. We established areas of interest (AOIs) for the eye, mouth, face, and background regions, and extracted the number of fixations, percentage of fixations, and fixation duration. Caregivers reported child CU-traits on the Antisocial Process Screening Device (APSD), and attention problems, rule-breaking, and aggression on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). As hypothesized, CU-traits were associated with fewer fixations (b = -1.063, p < .001), lower frequency of fixation (b = -.145, p = .004), and lower duration of fixation (b = -253.781, p = .003) to the eye AOI. Elevated aggression problems were inversely associated with eye AOI fixation number (b = .096, p < .001), frequency (b = .011, p = .007) and duration (b = 21.393, p = .003). Attention problems were unrelated to eye gaze patterns. We are expanding this sample to include an additional 30 children and will present updated findings at ABCT. Consistent with this year’s Convention theme, this study sheds light on cognitive processes relevant to disease burdens that are disproportionately experienced by minoritized children. Such insights can lead to a better understanding of underlying mechanisms as well as improved assessment and targeting of interventions to reduce future risk of antisocial behavior.