Emotional Prosody Recognition in Autism Spectrum Disorder Without Intellectual Disability: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Qiyun Luo, Xiaoyan Zeng, Fei Chen et al.
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In 30 seconds
This systematic review and meta-analysis examined emotional prosody recognition in people with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disability (ASD-without-ID), compared with typically developing participants. Across 29 eligible studies, a random-effects analysis found a moderate-to-large pooled difference (Hedges' g = -0.65), which remained stable after adjustment for publication bias using the trim-and-fill method. Emotional complexity and participant age significantly moderated variation in study effects. Differences were moderate for recognition of basic emotions and more pronounced for complex emotions, supporting further study of developmental and other factors.
Key findings
- Across 29 studies, the pooled effect was Hedges' g = -0.65 and remained stable after trim-and-fill adjustment for publication bias.
- Emotional complexity and participant age significantly moderated heterogeneity in effect sizes.
- Differences in prosody recognition were moderate for basic emotions and more pronounced for complex emotions.
Why it matters
Recognising emotion from vocal tone is relevant to social interaction, and the pooled findings suggest this ability differs between ASD-without-ID and typically developing groups. The stronger differences reported for complex emotions, alongside age-related moderation, indicate that performance may vary with emotional and developmental demands. These findings help frame assessment and research questions without establishing individual-level impairment or its cause.
What to keep in mind
The meta-analysis combines studies with heterogeneous results and methods; emotional complexity and age accounted for some, but not all, variation. The abstract also identifies further investigation of IQ measures and speakers of tonal languages as needed.