Intact integration of reward information during perceptual decision-making in autism

Alterations in reward processing were proposed as a contributing factor to social and communication symptoms in autism. However, the nature of these alterations remains unclear, and it is debated whether reduced sensitivity to reward is a general phenomenon, specific to social contexts, or exists at all. Evidence for reduced sensitivity to reward primarily comes from neurobiological studies, yet it remains uncertain how these findings translate to autistic behavior. A key challenge in addressing this question lies in assessing and comparing behavioral responses to reward between autistic and non-autistic groups. Here, we addressed this issue by investigating the integration of monetary reward information into behavior through the framework of Bayesian perceptual decision-making, enabling a quantitative evaluation of the direct contribution of reward to decision-making. Autistic (n = 32) and non-autistic (n = 48) participants performed an orientation categorization task, while the monetary reward given per correct answer varied across categories. Using signal-detection theory, we estimated decision boundaries while accounting for sensory uncertainty and prior expectation. Our results reveal that autistic individuals adjust their decision boundaries in response to monetary reward in a suboptimal but typical manner. These findings challenge the hypothesis of generalized alteration of reward processing in autism.