College of Arts & Sciences

Diana L Robins

Although I have broad training as a clinical neuropsychologist, my research interests lie primarily in the field of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Autism and other pervasive developmental disorders are severe disorders of development affecting social relatedness, communication, play, and adaptive functioning.

I have two ongoing lines of research. One involves improving the early detection of ASD. My doctoral dissertation involved the adaptation of a British instrument for the early detection of autism (the Checklist for Autism in Toddlers or CHAT; Baron-Cohen, Allen, & Gillberg, 1992). We validated the M-CHAT (Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers; Robins, Fein, & Barton, 1999) on a sample of approximately 1200 children aged 16-30 months, and determined through discriminant function analysis a subset of six items (e.g., interest in peers, pointing, response to name) that best distinguish children with ASD from the remainder of the sample (Robins, Fein, Barton, & Green, 2001). Follow-up work has broadened to include thousands of children screened through pediatricians, family practice physicians, early intervention providers, and clinical cases in which an older sibling has already been diagnosed with an ASD. Ongoing grant support for this work is provided by NICHD. At GSU, I am conducting a cross-validation study of the M-CHAT. More than 40 primary care sites in metro-Atlanta distribute the M-CHAT to families attending toddler well-child visits. Parents of children who demonstrate risk for ASD complete a follow-up interview, and families whose child continues to demonstrate risk are invited to attend a series of appointments, including a complete diagnostic evaluation. Please note that families only can enroll in the study through their child’s primary care provider; if you are a parent interested in having your child’s pediatrician participate, please contact the lab to request materials. If you are a pediatrician or other healthcare provider within 60 miles of downtown Atlanta, please contact the lab to learn how you can become involved in the M-CHAT study.

In addition to cross-validation of the M-CHAT, this large screening study is expanding autism screening to investigate: (a) multiple levels of screening; we are evaluating whether a brief observational measure helps separate true ASD cases from false positive cases; (b) comparison of autism-specific screening and broad developmental screening, using the Parents’ Evaluation of Development Status (Glascoe, 1999); and (c) in collaboration with Lauren B. Adamson, Ph.D. in the Developmental Psychology program, we are examining the emergence of joint attention and communication in toddlers with ASD and toddlers with other non-ASD developmental delays (funded by NICHD).

For more information on the M-CHAT, including instructions for use of the M-CHAT, downloads, scoring instructions, the follow-up interview, translations, and reprints, please visit my M-CHAT page.

The second line of research involves exploring the underlying neurobiology of emotion perception deficits in ASD using functional neuroimaging, psycholophysiological, and behavioral approaches. Individuals with ASD experience difficulty engaging in social interaction, and have specific deficits understanding emotions. Although emotion processing has been studied extensively in ASD, most research in the lab is very different from the social encounters people experience in the real world. This line of research attempts to elicit more realistic emotional processing by using dynamic movies instead of photographs. Participants view very brief movies consisting of professional actors delivering a single sentence, with emotional information present in the actors' tone of voice (prosody) and facial expression (see below for samples). Sentences are emotionally ambiguous; each can be sensibly delivered in all four emotional tones. Audio-visual movies were separated into audio and video tracks and remixed in order to create stimuli with mismatching emotional cues (e.g., a happy face accompanied by a fearful voice) and pilot tested on typical individuals in order to investigate perception of conflicting emotional information.

Thanks to Harder & Co. for stimulus development

Data collection has recently ended for several studies using these movies to investigate emotion perception, and we are in the process of analyzing data and writing papers.  One study, funded by Autism Speaks, used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine the brain mechanisms underlying the integration of emotional information from prosody (emotional tone of voice), and facial expression in both typically developing individuals and individuals with autism spectrum disorders. Additional studies funded by the GSU Brains and Behavior Initiative and the Center for Behavioral Neuroscience (D. Robins and T. King, co-PIs), combined fMRI with psychophysiological techniques to better understand the biological mechanisms of emotion perception.

Recent Grants

“Early detection of pervasive developmental disorders,” National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, April 2009-March 2014; Deborah Fein, Ph.D., Principal Investigator

“Psychophysiological mechanisms of emotion perception,” Autism Speaks, July 2008-December 2010, Diana L. Robins, Ph.D. & Tricia Z. King, Ph.D., Co-Principal Investigators

“The development of joint attention after infancy,” National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, August 2007-July 2008; Lauren B. Adamson, Ph.D., Principal Investigator

Recent Papers and Book Chapters

student co-authors are noted with an *

Students Interested in Applying for a Research Practicum

My lab interviews for research practicum positions every semester. This is a competitive process, since many students are interested in research involving autism spectrum disorders. Please note that I ask for a minimum of a 2-semester commitment when you are accepted to the practicum. This practicum involves direct contact with families whose children have, or are at risk for, developmental disabilities including autism spectrum disorders. All practicum students are expected to demonstrate responsibility, initiative, and professional behavior at ALL TIMES. Please take the application and the interview process seriously.

Research Assistant Application Form

Please return your completed the application, along with your CV or resume, to DevNeuro@gsu.edu or my 11^th floor Urban Life mailbox. My research coordinator will contact you to set up an interview.