Autistics have one type of laughter: Study

The researchers penned their findings in the paper titled “Laughter Differs in Children with Autism: An Acoustic Analysis of Laughter Produced by Children with and without the Disorder.”

The study of laughter and children
For the purpose of the study, researchers recorded laughter of children during a chain of lighthearted contacts with an assessor. There was no variation in the period of laugh, frequency or the number of laughs in each interface.

Till date, very few studies have examined vocal expressions of emotion in children with autism.

William Hudenko, the lead author on the paper and assistant professor of psychology at Ithaca College, said, “We hypothesized that children with autism may be expressing laughter primarily in response to positive internal states, rather than using laughter to negotiate social interactions.

“We revealed that children with autism produce very engaging laughs that we call ‘voiced’ laughs.”

Wendy Stone, professor of pediatrics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Jo-Anne Bachorowski, associate professor, Vanderbilt University, helped Hundenko during the course of the study.

Autism- a disease having strong genetic basis
Autism, a brain development disorder, is portrayed by reduced social interaction and communication. Affecting children before the age of three, the symptoms of Autism usually range from mild to severe. Autistic children normally exhibit rigid routines and repetitive behaviors.

The prevalence of autism is likely to be 4 times higher in boys than in girls. How autism occurs has still not been understood by the medical fraternity. However, it is widely believed that autism has strong genetic basis.

There is no known cure of autism till date. Many people believe that the condition should be endured and accepted as a difference and not treated as a disorder.