Autism Spectrum DisorderCoMorANCT05551260
Assessing Moral Cognitive Skills in Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorders
A study testing Neuropsychological assessments (tests allowing to measures attentional, executive and emotional performances) and experimental protocol assessing moral cognition in people with Autism Spectrum Disorder, run by Hôpital le Vinatier at 1 site in France.
Trial summary
In the international literature, it is currently accepted that, relative to neurotypicals, people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) present patterns of moral judgments marked by a minimization of intentionality and a strong condemnation of agents responsible for accidents. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 40 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Autism Spectrum Disorder
- What is being tested?
- Neuropsychological assessments (tests allowing to measures attentional, executive and emotional performances) and experimental protocol assessing moral cognition
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 60 participants
- Where
- 1 siteFrance
- Study dates
- 2 May 2023to 6 May 2026
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 to 40 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult
Who may be able to join
- ASD group:
- Diagnosis of ASD according to DSM-5 criteria
- Age between 18 and 40 years old
- Francophone
- Affiliated to social security
- Having given their consent to participate in the study
Show all 12Show fewer
- Patient under guardianship and curatorship
- Neurotypical group:
- Age between 18 and 40 years old
- Francophone
- Affiliated to a social security scheme
- Having given their consent to participate in the study
Who cannot join
- ASD group:
- Diagnosis of intellectual development disorder established according to DSM-5 criteria
- Language, sensory or motor impairments hindering participation in the study
- Control group:
- Neurodevelopmental pathology (declarative)
- Neurological pathology
- Language, sensory or motor impairments hindering participation in the study
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
About this study
In the international literature, it is currently accepted that, relative to neurotypicals, people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) present patterns of moral judgments marked by a minimization of intentionality and a strong condemnation of agents responsible for accidents. However, until now, all studies are based on declarative paradigms, and no one has proposed to examine the relationship of people with ASD to moral transgressions (i.e. to a bad action done deliberately or to a good deed deliberately omitted) in an implicit paradigm, that is, when the answer is made on the assignment of an expressive face to these moral offenses. Furthermore, no study has investigated whether diminished sensitivity to intention and intransigence of incidental judgment occur in both automatic (implicit) and deliberative (explicit) settings.
Investigators planned to study how people with ASD without intellectual disability process emotions expressed by others in response to different forms of moral offense and to examine whether patterns potentially contrast in degree and/or kind with those of neurotypicals.
Read the detailed description
In the CoMorA project, participants will participate to two independent tasks: an explicit one of deciding whether or not an emotion expressed on the face of a third person would be an appropriate emotional reaction to the offense, and an implicit one in which the subjects will have to determine the fastest sex to which the face expressing such or such an emotion belongs. This procedure initiates an implicit processing of the facial expression.
The theoretical hypotheses of the CoMorA project are the following:
- In the explicit response condition, people with ASD will show different emotional assignment patterns than controls do, depending on the nature of the offense (accidental transgression, attempted harm, and intentional harm).
- In the implicit response condition, people with ASD will exhibit emotion processing patterns identical to those of controls.
- The differences in responses of controls and people with ASD in the explicit condition will be underpinned by executive functions and social cognitive performances.
- Conditions
- Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Being tested
- Neuropsychological assessments (tests allowing to measures attentional, executive and emotional performances) and experimental protocol assessing moral cognition
- Keywords
- Moral cognition, autism spectrum disorders
- Medical subject headings
- Autism Spectrum Disorder
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Neuropsychological assessments (tests allowing to measures attentional, executive and emotional performances) and experimental protocol assessing moral cognitionOther
Day 0: sending of the information notice
Day 1 : signing the consent form + neuropsychological tests assessing reasoning and abstraction abilities, attentional processes, executive functions (including inhibition and mental flexibility) and social cognitive functions, including facial emotion recognition, theory of mind and perception and social knowledge (duration 1h30-2h). Experimental protocol: vignettes of moral offenses manipulating variables of intention and consequence. This systematic manipulation, commonly used in the field of moral judgment, usually leads to 3 combinations of variables: intentional harm (present intention; present consequence); attempted harm (intent present; consequence absent); accidental harm (intention absent; consequence present). Another form of accidental harm will also be constructed (positive intention; present consequence) (duration : 1h)
Between day 1 and day 21 : second part of the Day 1 tests
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| People with ASD | Experimental | 30 people with ASD without IDD Receives: Other: Neuropsychological assessments (tests allowing to measures attentional, executive and emotional performances) and experimental protocol assessing moral cognition |
| Neurotypicals | Active comparator | 30 neurotypicals Receives: Other: Neuropsychological assessments (tests allowing to measures attentional, executive and emotional performances) and experimental protocol assessing moral cognition |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Evaluation of moral cognition
First the reading of a vignette presenting a moral scenario jointly manipulating variables of intention and consequence. This systematic manipulation, commonly used in the field of moral judgment, leads to 4 combinations of variables:
intentional harm: present intention; present consequence attempted harm: present intention; absent consequence accidental harm: absent intention; present consequence accidental harm with positive intention: positive intention; present consequence
A presentation to the participants of a face presenting an intense facial expression (in a counterbalanced way of man or woman.
Explicit procedure: After the implicit classification task, the participants will see the same photo and will have to indicate whether the expression of this person is appropriate to the situation described. The proportion of correct answers (CP) will be recorded.
Measured: at day 0
Evaluation of moral cognition
First the reading of a vignette presenting a moral scenario jointly manipulating variables of intention and consequence. This systematic manipulation, commonly used in the field of moral judgment, leads to 4 combinations of variables:
intentional harm: present intention; present consequence attempted harm: present intention; absent consequence accidental harm: absent intention; present consequence accidental harm with positive intention: positive intention; present consequence
A presentation to the participants of a face presenting an intense facial expression (in a counterbalanced way of man or woman
- Implicit procedure: The participants will participate to an implicit task consisting in classifying as quickly as possible the sex to which the character of the photograph belongs (male or female). The response time (TR) will be recorded.
Measured: between day 1 and day 21
Secondary outcomes (4)
Reasoning and general intellectual level
the following neuropsychological tests will be proposed: Similarities: Weschler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-IV ) During this test, the subject must determine the common point or the similarity between two concepts (i.e., orange-banana). This test measures the ability to form abstract concepts. Score vary from 1 to 19 Cubes: WAIS-IV Using 2, 4 or 9 two-coloured cubes, the subject must reproduce the shapes presented to him, respecting the organization of the figure. This test measures non-verbal reasoning, visual-perceptive, visual-constructive and practical skills. Score vary from 1 to 19 Matrices: WAIS-IV The subject must complete a matrix made up of elements according to a logic. This test assesses non-verbal reasoning as well as visual-spatial abilities. Score vary from 1 to 19 Vocabulary: WAIS-IV The subject must explain the meaning of certain words by giving their definition. This test assesses the level of vocabulary and the integrity of the lexical stock. From 1 to 19
Measured: at day 0 and between day 1 and day 21
Attentional and executive measures
Test d'Attention Concentrée (D2R) : consists of the letters "d" and "p" provided with dashes.Scores vary from 1 to 99. Stroop: name the color of colored rectangles, read color names printed in black,and name the color of the ink in which the color words are written and inhibit the reading of each word. It measures inhibition. Trail Making Test (TMT) is carried out in 2 stages. During the part A the subject must connect numbers in ascending order with a pencil. Then, during the part B the subject must alternately connect a number to a letter in an increasing way. It makes it possible to measure reactive flexibility capacities. Digit span : (WAIS-IV) consists of repeating orally a sequence of numbers given orally and measures the storage capacity of short-term information (short-term memory). From 1 to 19. Backwards digit span (WAIS-IV) Same but in reverse order (e.g., 5-7-9 > 9-7-5). This test measures the ability to manipulate short-term information (working memory). From 1 to 19.
Measured: at day 0 and between day 1 and day 21
Social cognitive measures
TREF (Facial Emotion Recognition Test) assesses the ability to recognize facial emotions. It provides an overall emotion recognition score and a sub-score per emotion, as well as their detection threshold. Scores vary from 0 to 100% PerSo (ClaCoS) is to assess the perception and processing of social cues present in a situation in order to make inferences about it. It is made up of 4 color plates selected according to the type of emotion and situation represented (simple/complex context; simple/complex emotion). The task to be performed is inspired by the IPT cognitive remediation program. Scores vary from 0 to 24.
RMET (Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test) is made up of 36 photos of looks in black and white. The subject must choose, among 4 propositions, the one which seems the most adapted to describe the mental state of the character. This task is classically used to assess affective theory of mind abilities in autism. Score vary from 0 to 36.
Measured: at day 0 and between day 1 and day 21
Alexithymia
TAS-20 (Toronto Alexithymia Scale 20 items) is composed of 20 items evaluating 3 dimensions of alexithymia:
- Difficulty describing emotions - Ex: "It is difficult for me to find the right words to describe my feelings"
- Difficulty identifying emotions - Ex: "I sometimes do not know what emotion I am feeling exactly"
- Operative thinking - Ex: "I prefer to talk to people about their activity rather than their feel
For the questionnaire the raw scores will be recorded.
Measured: at day 0 and between day 1 and day 21
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted22 Sep 2022
- Study start2 May 2023
- Primary completion6 May 2026
- Study completion6 May 2026
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Autism Spectrum DisorderStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by Hôpital le VinatierThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Model description
- This study uses standard neuropsychological tests and a computerized experimental task, submitted to two parallel groups: participants with ASD and control participants matched in age, gender and level of education (1:1 ratio). Participants in both groups completed the neuropsychological tests and the experimental task successively (fixed order for all participants). Within the experimental task, the experimental conditions appear randomly.
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 60 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Hôpital le Vinatier
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
- Investigators
- Elodie PEYROUX, Principal investigator, Centre Hospitalier le Vinatier
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05551260
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 2022-A01040-43
- Acronym
- CoMorA
- Status last verified
- Jun 2026
- First submitted
- 19 Jul 2022
- Last updated
- 10 Jun 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 10 Jun 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Assessing Moral Cognitive Skills in Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorders
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05551260
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- CoMorA / 2022-A01040-43
- Conditions
- Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Keywords
- Moral cognition, autism spectrum disorders
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 60 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Hôpital le VinatierUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 2 May 2023 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 6 May 2026 (actual)
- Study completion
- 6 May 2026 (actual)
- First posted
- 22 Sep 2022 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
In the international literature, it is currently accepted that, relative to neurotypicals, people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) present patterns of moral judgments marked by a minimization of intentionality and a strong condemnation of agents responsible for accidents. However, until now, all studies are based on declarative paradigms, and no one has proposed to examine the relationship of people with ASD to moral transgressions (i.e. to a bad action done deliberately or to a good deed deliberately omitted) in an implicit paradigm, that is, when the answer is made on the assignment of an expressive face to these moral offenses. Furthermore, no study has investigated whether diminished sensitivity to intention and intransigence of incidental judgment occur in both automatic (implicit) and deliberative (explicit) settings.
Investigators planned to study how people with ASD without intellectual disability process emotions expressed by others in response to different forms of moral offense and to examine whether patterns potentially contrast in degree and/or kind with those of neurotypicals.
Detailed description
In the CoMorA project, participants will participate to two independent tasks: an explicit one of deciding whether or not an emotion expressed on the face of a third person would be an appropriate emotional reaction to the offense, and an implicit one in which the subjects will have to determine the fastest sex to which the face expressing such or such an emotion belongs. This procedure initiates an implicit processing of the facial expression.
The theoretical hypotheses of the CoMorA project are the following:
- In the explicit response condition, people with ASD will show different emotional assignment patterns than controls do, depending on the nature of the offense (accidental transgression, attempted harm, and intentional harm).
- In the implicit response condition, people with ASD will exhibit emotion processing patterns identical to those of controls.
- The differences in responses of controls and people with ASD in the explicit condition will be underpinned by executive functions and social cognitive performances.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 2
- Model description
- This study uses standard neuropsychological tests and a computerized experimental task, submitted to two parallel groups: participants with ASD and control participants matched in age, gender and level of education (1:1 ratio). Participants in both groups completed the neuropsychological tests and the experimental task successively (fixed order for all participants). Within the experimental task, the experimental conditions appear randomly.
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| People with ASD | Experimental | Other: Neuropsychological assessments (tests allowing to measures attentional, executive and emotional performances) and experimental protocol assessing moral cognition30 people with ASD without IDD |
| Neurotypicals | Active comparator | Other: Neuropsychological assessments (tests allowing to measures attentional, executive and emotional performances) and experimental protocol assessing moral cognition30 neurotypicals |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 40 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult
Key inclusion criteria (12 listed)
- Diagnosis of ASD according to DSM-5 criteria
- Age between 18 and 40 years old
- Francophone
- Affiliated to social security
- Having given their consent to participate in the study
Key exclusion criteria (7 listed)
- Diagnosis of intellectual development disorder established according to DSM-5 criteria
- Language, sensory or motor impairments hindering participation in the study
- Neurodevelopmental pathology (declarative)
- Neurological pathology
- Language, sensory or motor impairments hindering participation in the study
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Neuropsychological assessments (tests allowing to measures attentional, executive and emotional performances) and experimental protocol assessing moral cognitionDay 0: sending of the information notice Day 1 : signing the consent form + neuropsychological tests assessing reasoning and abstraction abilities, attentional processes, executive functions (including inhibition and mental flexibility) and social cognitive functions, including facial emotion recognition, theory of mind and perception and social knowledge (duration 1h30-2h). Experimental protocol: vignettes of moral offenses manipulating variables of intention and consequence. This systematic manipulation, commonly used in the field of moral judgment, usually leads to 3 combinations of variables: intentional harm (present intention; present consequence); attempted harm (intent present; consequence absent); accidental harm (intention absent; consequence present). Another form of accidental harm will also be constructed (positive intention; present consequence) (duration : 1h) Between day 1 and day 21 : second part of the Day 1 tests | Other | Neurotypicals, People with ASD |
Primary outcome
Evaluation of moral cognition
Time frame: at day 0
First the reading of a vignette presenting a moral scenario jointly manipulating variables of intention and consequence. This systematic manipulation, commonly used in the field of moral judgment, leads to 4 combinations of variables: intentional harm: present intention; present consequence attempted harm: present intention; absent consequence accidental harm: absent intention; present consequence accidental harm with positive intention: positive intention; present consequence A presentation to the participants of a face presenting an intense facial expression (in a counterbalanced way of man or woman. Explicit procedure: After the implicit classification task, the participants will see the same photo and will have to indicate whether the expression of this person is appropriate to the situation described. The proportion of correct answers (CP) will be recorded.
Evaluation of moral cognition
Time frame: between day 1 and day 21
First the reading of a vignette presenting a moral scenario jointly manipulating variables of intention and consequence. This systematic manipulation, commonly used in the field of moral judgment, leads to 4 combinations of variables: intentional harm: present intention; present consequence attempted harm: present intention; absent consequence accidental harm: absent intention; present consequence accidental harm with positive intention: positive intention; present consequence A presentation to the participants of a face presenting an intense facial expression (in a counterbalanced way of man or woman 1. Implicit procedure: The participants will participate to an implicit task consisting in classifying as quickly as possible the sex to which the character of the photograph belongs (male or female). The response time (TR) will be recorded.
4 secondary outcomes
Reasoning and general intellectual level
Time frame: at day 0 and between day 1 and day 21
Attentional and executive measures
Time frame: at day 0 and between day 1 and day 21
Social cognitive measures
Time frame: at day 0 and between day 1 and day 21
Alexithymia
Time frame: at day 0 and between day 1 and day 21
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 10 Jun 2026.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Elodie PEYROUX principal investigator
Centre Hospitalier le Vinatier
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Neuropsychological assessments (tests allowing to measures attentional, executive and emotional performances) and experimental protocol assessing moral cognition in people with Autism Spectrum Disorder, run by Hôpital le Vinatier at 1 site in France.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 12 inclusion and 7 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 10 Jun 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in France. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Evaluation of moral cognition (time frame: at day 0). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 10 Jun 2026.