title: An ethological approach to autism: an analysis of visual behaviour and interpersonal contact in a child versus adult interaction.
abstract: Eighteen children classified into 4 diagnostic categories were compared based on their behaviour in a child-adult interaction. The categories consist of autistic children with full syndrome, autistic children in a residual state, hyperactive children, and mentally retarded children. An ethological analysis of the interpersonal distance, the amount of physical contact, and the direction of the look/gaze was carried out to describe some behavioural aspects of infantile autism. The autistic children with full syndrome were found to be different from the other categories by a relatively close interpersonal distance, a high frequency of physical contact, and a low frequency of "look at face".
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Psychiatry, Centre Hospitalier Regional de Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pedersen
authors.forename: M F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Livoir-Petersen
authors.forename: J T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Schelde
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001143:Arousal; D001288:Attention; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005403:Fixation, Ocular; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D009633:Nonverbal Communication; D010553:Personality Development; D011574:Psychoanalytic Theory; D012929:Psychological Distance; D012919:Social Behavior; D012931:Social Environment; D014705:Verbal Behavior; D014796:Visual Perception