Visuospatial attention in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A comparison between 2-D and 3-D environments

Previous research has illustrated the unique benefits of three-dimensional (3-D) Virtual Reality (VR) technology in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) children. This study examined the use of 3-D VR technology as an assessment tool in ASD children, and further compared its use to two-dimensional (2-D) tasks. Additionally, we aimed to examine attentional network functioning in ASD children. We administered a battery of visual processing and attentional tests on 18 ASD children and 18 age-matched typically developing counterparts. Results showed that both groups performed comparably on 2-D and 3-D visual processing and attention tasks, although the ASD group was significantly slower in the 3-D task. Intact attentional network functioning was also revealed in the ASD group. These findings have validated the use of VR technology as an assessment of ASD functions, and contributed to the understanding of functions in young ASD children.