Auditory evoked responses and their modifications during conditioning paradigm in autistic children

Auditory evoked responses (AERs) were recorded from 16 autistic children (ages 2–10 years) and age-matched normal and retarded controls. In order to test the ability to form auditory-visual cross-modal associations, often impaired in autism, the effects on AERs of coupling sound and light were studied with a paradigm that did not require the cooperation of the subject. Several differences between groups were found concerning the frequency and the amplitudes of present AERs. The pattern characterizing the effects on AERs of coupling sound and light (conditioning phenomenon) was observed for both autistic and normal controls, and not for retarded children. Results suggest that autistic children may have a real but slow learning ability.This study was supported by C.N.R.S. (UA 596), Biology and Neuropsychiatry, Sécurité Sociale, 1982. We wish to thank M. Barre, A. Lardeux, and L. Crespin for their technical work.