A randomized cross‐over trial investigating the neurocognitive effects of acute exercise on face recognition in children with autism spectrum disorder

Difficulties in face recognition contribute to social‐cognitive problems in autistic children. Evidence on behavioral interventions targeting this cognitive domain is limited. In non‐autistic individuals, a single exercise session is known to elicit temporary benefits for several cognitive functions. Our study investigates whether acute aerobic exercise influences face recognition in autistic children. In a randomized order, 29 participants completed a 20‐min moderately‐intense cycling bout on an ergometer and a control condition. Before and after each condition, participants categorized Mooney faces and instruments during a computerized cognitive task. Simultaneously, the N170 component of event‐related potentials and pupil size were recorded using electroencephalography and eyetracking, respectively. As indicated by a greater increase of reaction time in the exercise compared to the control condition, the results revealed impaired face recognition following aerobic exercise. This effect was accompanied by a lower decrease of the positive N170 amplitude and a trend towards a greater constriction of the pupil size in the exercise compared to the control condition. Our findings highlight the interplay of the physiological state and face recognition in autistic children. Exercise‐induced impairments in this social‐cognitive ability may be due to an interference with the learning effect that is typically seen for the structural encoding of faces. Lay Summary Our findings indicate that a single aerobic exercise session temporarily impairs the ability to recognize faces in autistic children. On a neuronal level, this is due to a blocking of a learning effect that can be expected in difficult face recognition tasks. Following exercise, autistic children may experience an arousal level that is disadvantageous for social communication.