As humans, we share a strong desire to interact with other people. This strong motivation to
engage socially directs our attention to social signals, guides us to participate in behaviours …

Abstract The Social Motivation Theory posits that a reduced sensitivity to the value of social
stimuli, specifically faces, can account for social impairments in Autism Spectrum Disorders …

Human social motivation is characterized by the pursuit of social reward and the avoidance
of social punishment. However, most previous studies have focused on using human faces …

The social motivation theory proposes that individuals naturally orient their attention to the
social world. Research has documented the rewarding value of social stimuli, such as …

Brain regions associated with the processing of tangible rewards (such as money, food, or
sex) are also involved in anticipating social rewards and avoiding social punishment. To …

Background Differences in social communication are commonly reported in autism spectrum
condition (ASC). A recent theory attributes this to a reduced motivation to engage with …

Humans are commonly motivated towards cooperation and prosociality. In this study, we
examined this motivational predisposition in autistic individuals. Using an adaptation of the …

Recently, the question has been raised if social interaction problems expressed by people
with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), are caused by an underlying deficit in social …

Background: Social engagement differences are a core diagnostic feature of autism, though
there is debate as to whether they reflect a decreased intrinsic motivation for social …

Diminished social motivation is one of the most striking features in autism. Yet, few studies
have directly assessed the value people with an ASD place on social interactions, or how …