UWF student studies brain signals in individuals with ADHD and autism

A UWF Usha Kundu, MD College of Health student is taking a look at how people with autism or ADHD process sensory information compared to neurotypical people, or individuals without ADHD or autism, to get a better understanding of their sensitivities to stimuli.

“Some people with ADHD or Autism tend to experience sensory issues where they might be very overwhelmed or sensitive to things like lights, sounds, or tactile feelings,” said Elizabeth Black, a psychology major in her senior year. “They have low thresholds for sensory information and only need a little bit for it to make them feel anxious. Other people in these groups may be under-responsive to sensory information. This might be a person where you feel like you need to call their name five times before they register it. They have a high threshold for sensory information and need a little bit extra input for it to reach their awareness.”

Working with Dr. Vanessa Rainey, an associate professor in the Department of Psychology, Black is using an electroencephalogram, or EEG, which records the brain’s signals. In the study, participants wear an EEG cap, watch a screen with shapes and press a button when a triangle pops up on the screen and try to resist the urge to press the button when a different shape pops up on the screen. This elicits a brain response. Black analyzes the results and studies the peak of the brain signal wave called the amplitude. A higher peak on the wave usually means that the brain has a stronger reaction and vice-versa.

Black says it is currently not clear from the literature if differences are very early on in cognitive processing where we are just receiving sensory information or at a later point in time when we start to interpret and act on sensory information.

“If we understand this better, maybe future research can target interventions,” Black said.

For more information about the Usha Kundu, MD College of Health, visit uwf.edu/ukcoh.