Decoding Social Information from Biological Motion in the Broad Autism Phenotype: An Eye-Tracking Study

Authors

  • Elena L. Gavrilova HSE University, 20 Myasnitskaya Str., Moscow, 101000, Russian Federation
  • Anna I. Izmalkova HSE University, 20 Myasnitskaya Str., Moscow, 101000, Russian Federation
  • Ksenia I. Novoselova HSE University, 20 Myasnitskaya Str., Moscow, 101000, Russian Federation
  • Andriy V. Myachykov HSE University, 20 Myasnitskaya Str., Moscow, 101000, Russian Federation; University of Macau, Avenida da Universidade, Taipa, Macau, 999078, China
  • Yury Y. Shtyrov HSE University, 20 Myasnitskaya Str., Moscow, 101000, Russian Federation; Aarhus University, Nordre Ringgade, Aarhus, 8000, Danmark

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17323/1813-8918-2026-3-498-511

Keywords:

social cognition, motion perception, eye-tracking, broad autism phenotype

Abstract

The term broad autism phenotype (BAP) refers to individuals who do not meet the diagnostic criteria for autism but share some of its features, including social difficulties and atypicalities in visual perception and attention that have been linked to a detail-oriented cognitive style. To examine both the cognitive and social aspects of BAP, we employed a biological motion paradigm combined with eye-tracking technology. Participants with high (n = 20) and low (n = 22) levels of autistic traits, grouped by their Autism Spectrum Quotient scores, viewed point-light displays depicting emotional expressions and dyadic interactions and identified them by keypress in a forced-choice task. Although both groups performed with near-ceiling accuracy (>90%), high-trait individuals responded significantly slower in both tasks. No group differences emerged in global eye-movement metrics such as the number and characteristics of fixations and saccades. However, the spatial allocation of attention revealed more finegrained effects: high-trait individuals made more fixations on non-social background regions in the emotion task and showed a less centralized gaze pattern when viewing dyadic interactions. These findings suggest that individuals with elevated autistic traits process the social information carried by biological motion with reduced efficiency relative to their low-trait counterparts, which is reflected in slower responses and less focused attention to socially relevant regions of the display. The results are consistent with a graded, efficiency-based account of social perception in the broad autism phenotype.

Author Biographies

  • Elena L. Gavrilova, HSE University, 20 Myasnitskaya Str., Moscow, 101000, Russian Federation

    Junior Research Fellow, Cognitive Health and Intelligence Center, Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, HSE University.

    Research Area: experimental psychology, neurodevelopmental disorders, eyetracking.

  • Anna I. Izmalkova, HSE University, 20 Myasnitskaya Str., Moscow, 101000, Russian Federation

    Research Fellow, Cognitive Health and Intelligence Center, Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, HSE University.

    Research Area: cognitive strategies, working memory, eye-tracking.

  • Ksenia I. Novoselova, HSE University, 20 Myasnitskaya Str., Moscow, 101000, Russian Federation

    Research Assistant, Cognitive Health and Intelligence Center, Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, HSE University.

    Research Area: cognitive functioning, neurodevelopmental disorders.

  • Andriy V. Myachykov, HSE University, 20 Myasnitskaya Str., Moscow, 101000, Russian Federation; University of Macau, Avenida da Universidade, Taipa, Macau, 999078, China

    Lead Research Fellow, Cognitive Health and Intelligence Center, Institute for Cognitive Neuro science, HSE University; Professor, University of Macau (China).

    Research Area: embodied cognition, bilingualism, cognitive aging.

  • Yury Y. Shtyrov, HSE University, 20 Myasnitskaya Str., Moscow, 101000, Russian Federation; Aarhus University, Nordre Ringgade, Aarhus, 8000, Danmark

    Lead Research Fellow, Cognitive Health and Intelligence Center, Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, HSE University; Professor, Aarhus University (Danmark).

    Research Area: neurophysiology, experimental psychology, language studies.

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Published

2026-09-20

Issue

Vol. 23 No. 3 (2026)

Section

The Human Mind Across Scales: a Neurobiological, Cognitive, and Social Perspecti

How to Cite

Decoding Social Information from Biological Motion in the Broad Autism Phenotype: An Eye-Tracking Study. (2026). Psychology. Journal of the Higher School of Economics, 23(3), 498-511. https://doi.org/10.17323/1813-8918-2026-3-498-511