An investigation of a novel broad autism phenotype: increased facial masculinity among parents of children on the autism spectrum

The broad autism phenotype commonly refers to sub-clinical levels of autistic-like behaviour and cognition presented in biological relatives of autistic people. In a recent study, we reported findings suggesting that the broad autism phenotype may also be expressed in facial morphology, specifically increased facial masculinity.

Citation:
Tan DW, Gilani SZ, Alvares GA, Mian A, Whitehouse AJO, Maybery MT. An investigation of a novel broad autism phenotype: increased facial masculinity among parents of children on the autism spectrum. Proc Biol Sci. 2022;289(1971):20220143.

Keywords:
Autism spectrum disorder; broad autism phenotype; facial morphology; masculinity; photogrammetry.

Abstract:
The broad autism phenotype commonly refers to sub-clinical levels of autistic-like behaviour and cognition presented in biological relatives of autistic people. In a recent study, we reported findings suggesting that the broad autism phenotype may also be expressed in facial morphology, specifically increased facial masculinity.