Using Virtual Reality Technology to Explore the Inner Perceptual World of Autism, Solus/Sublime?

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Overview and Rationale: NB: Correct terms for describing the conditions formallycalled Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) are controversial. Here, "autism" isshorthand for ASD, covering also Asperger's Syndrome/Disorder, ChildhoodAutism/Autistic Disorder and PDD-NOS. Autism is a common neuro-developmentalcondition directly affecting at least 1% of the UK population (Baird et al, 2006;Brugha et al, 2013). In recent years it has become clear that although the socialdifficulties which traditionally characterized autism are important, there are sensoryfeatures of this condition which profoundly affect everyday life and may also haveaetiological significance (Pellicano & Burr, 2012). These comprise a combination ofhyper-(or over)sensitivity and hypo-(or under)sensitivity to everyday sensorystimulation, combined with what is known as "sensory seeking" behaviour, whereparticular types of sensory stimulation are sought after. Examples are extremedifficulties in coping with sudden noises or strong smells, unresponsiveness to largetemperature changes and "self-stimulatory" behaviour like repetitive hand-flapping(Robertson & Simmons, 2013). Evidence for these sensory features is now so strongthat they are included as part of the latest diagnostic criteria (APA, 2013).The reports of autistic individuals make clear that their perception is qualitativelydifferent from that of neurotypicals (Grandin, 2008; Fleischmann, 2012). Aspects ofautistic perception commonly reported are a "fragmented world", where the worldseems to consist of isolated objects rather than the coherent whole thatneurotypicals perceive, and "sensory overload" where an accumulation of everydaysensory stimulation becomes overwhelming and can lead to panic attacks (Frith,2003; Robertson & Simmons, 2015). A key difficulty is how to understand the truenature of perception in autism. Most data come from indirect reports, usually fromcaregiver questionnaires reporting their child's reactions to sensory stimulation(Glod et al, 2015). There are several vivid descriptions from individuals able to reporttheir experiences verbally or otherwise (Grandin, 2006;http://carlysvoice.com/home/aboutcarly/), but these lack scientific rigour and mayhave been manipulated by editors and co-authors. A few studies (e.g. Smith & Sharp,2013; Robertson & Simmons, 2015) have explored autistic sensory experience usingqualitative techniques like structured interviews and focus groups, but they arelimited by the ability of autistic individuals to articulate their experiences accurately.Autistic perception has been investigated by direct measurement using thetechniques of perceptual psychophysics in lab-based experiments. However, therehas been little success in matching the results of these experiments with the real-lifeperceptual experiences of autistics, possibly due to a lack of ecological validity (seeSimmons et al, 2009; Haeson et al, 2010). To address these problems we will explorehow to articulate perceptual experience using Virtual Reality (VR) technology.