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A Novel Framework for Impaired Imitation in ASD

NCT03423160 · Status: ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING · Type: OBSERVATIONAL · Enrollment: 201

Last updated 2026-04-27

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

There is long-standing recognition that people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have difficulty imitating others' actions; some investigators have highlighted impaired imitation as being a core contributor to the development of autism. What is yet unknown is precisely how imitation in children with ASD differs from that of typically developing peers.The investigators have identified a task parameter that separates preserved from impaired gesture imitation in ASD: children with ASD have difficulty imitating when the task requires two separate movement elements be coordinated simultaneously. By contrast, imitation is relatively preserved when movement elements are performed serially. The coordination of simultaneous movements is a hallmark of actions performed in the real world. With an eye to optimizing common therapies that depend heavily on imitation, the next step is to tease apart where, in the chain from perception to action, the capacity limitation in simultaneous processing lies. This study will be conducted in about two days and will involve imitating gestures that are presented via video. In addition, an EEG will record the brain's electrical activity during certain tasks to assess how the brain responds when the imitation task is more or less difficult. Several other clinical and behavioral measures will also be used.

Conditions

Interventions

OTHER

None--observational

Observational study of behavior and electrical brain activity

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Hugo W. Moser Research Institute at Kennedy Krieger, Inc.

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Joshua Ewen, MD · Hugo Moser Research Institute at Kennedy Krieger

Eligibility

Min Age
8 Years
Max Age
12 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2018-04-24
Primary Completion
2023-09-01
Completion
2028-12-31

Countries

  • United States

Study Locations

More Related Trials

Entities

Diseases

Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT03423160 on ClinicalTrials.gov