The effect of visual attention instructions on gaze behavior and learning the skill during observational learning in children with autism spectrum disorder: an eye-tracking study

Background: Autism is one of the most common disorders in children. Children with autism have difficulty with many motor skills. This study aimed to investigate the effect of internal and external attention on gaze behavior and skill learning in children with autism spectrum disorder.Methods: A total of 40 children with autism spectrum disorder were selected to participate in this study. The subjects were randomly divided into two groups: external attention and internal attention. Motor function and gaze control (quiet eye duration) were evaluated before and after observation exercises. Observation exercises included ten viewings of observation clips manipulated in the form of gaze behavior in each attention group (internal/external signs) during observation. To ensure the adherence of the participants’ visual attention to the given instructions, the gaze behavior of these subjects while watching the video clips was examined using eye tracking.Results: The results showed that the external attention group had better performance and longer quiet-eye duration than the internal attention group (P≤0.05).Conclusion: Providing educational instructions to promote external attention in the form of gaze facilitates the effects of observational learning for the cognitive-motor improvement of autistic children.