title: Violations of personal space by individuals with autism spectrum disorder.
abstract: The ability to maintain an appropriate physical distance (i.e., interpersonal distance) from others is a critical aspect of social interaction and contributes importantly to real-life social functioning. In Study 1, using parent-report data that had been acquired on a large number of individuals (ages 4-18 years) for the Autism Genetic Resource Exchange and the Simons Simplex Collection, we found that those with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD; n = 766) more often violated the space of others compared to their unaffected siblings (n = 766). This abnormality held equally across ASD diagnostic categories, and correlated with clinical measures of communication and social functioning. In Study 2, laboratory experiments in a sample of high-functioning adults with ASD demonstrated an altered relationship between interpersonal distance and personal space, and documented a complete absence of personal space in 3 individuals with ASD. Furthermore, anecdotal self-report from several participants confirmed that violations of social distancing conventions continue to occur in real-world interactions through adulthood. We suggest that atypical social distancing behavior offers a practical and sensitive measure of social dysfunction in ASD, and one whose psychological and neurological substrates should be further investigated.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, United States of America; Division of Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Daniel P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Kennedy
authors.affiliation: Division of Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, United States of America; Division of Biology, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Ralph
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Adolphs
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002659:Child Development Disorders, Pervasive / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016208:Databases, Factual; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010550:Personal Space; D012919:Social Behavior
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