Completed Projects
Neuroscience Research
María Sotillo Project: Level 1 Intervention in ASD through Virtual Reality.
Autism, or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder defined by the DSM-5 (APA, 2013). It is characterized by difficulties in communication and social interaction, as well as the presence of repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, and activities. Since it is a spectrum of variation, there can be significant variability in how it manifests.
ASD is diagnosed exclusively based on a broad yet well-defined set of behavioral indicators, which allow for a clinical diagnosis.
Individuals with Level 1 ASD (ASD-N1), previously referred to as Asperger Syndrome until 2013, are characterized by difficulties in social interaction and verbal and non-verbal communication. They exhibit challenges in understanding social norms and the subtleties of non-verbal language. They tend to have repetitive patterns of behavior, limited interests in social activities, difficulties adapting to changes, and may require support in social or learning situations.
Research suggests that many of the difficulties faced by individuals with Level 1 ASD in social contexts are related to alterations in social cognition processes and executive functions (EF).
Given the importance and function of the described cognitive processes, their research, assessment, and the development of intervention programs would help various populations with impairments improve their ability to adjust to social norms and interact effectively with others, as could be the case for individuals with Level 1 ASD.
This group of individuals with Level 1 ASD is particularly amenable to intervention programs using technological tools such as virtual reality (VR) because these procedures allow for the exclusion of some of the variables that most affect their development and learning, such as social pressure, temporal immediacy, social unpredictability, sensory overload, communication subtleties, and the real consequences of a mismatch in executive functions, etc. VR allows us to experience certain sensory forms of reality, manipulating everything necessary within that reality to make it accessible, understandable, and useful for individuals with ASD. Moreover, the intellectual capabilities of individuals with Level 1 ASD reasonably allow us to hypothesize the generation of VR learning applicable to that other non-virtual reality, which can be extremely challenging and harsh for individuals with ASD.
The general objective of this research project is to evaluate and intervene in the functioning of executive functions and social cognition from a cognitive and anatomical-functional approach in adolescents and young individuals with Level 1 Autism Spectrum Disorder.
The general objective is operationalized in the following specific objectives:
- Evaluate the functioning of executive function cognitive processes related to the symptomatology presented by adolescents and young individuals with Level 1 ASD. (PRE)
- Evaluate the functioning of social cognition processes related to the symptomatology presented by adolescents and young individuals with Level 1 ASD. (PRE)
- Develop and implement a social cognition and executive function program using virtual reality for adolescents and young individuals with Level 1 ASD. (INT)
Evaluate the functioning of social cognition and executive function cognitive processes in adolescents and young individuals with Level 1 ASD after implementing an intervention program (in social cognition and executive function) using virtual reality. (POST)
