Why study movement variability in autism?

Movement variability has emerged as a critical research component in the field of neural motor control. This chapter explains why movement variability can be seen as such a rich resource for studying neural development and autism spectrum disorder. This cannot be done without a unifying framework for understanding the relationship between neural control, movement, and movement sensing. Thus, in the process of explaining why we should study movements, several analytical and empirical aspects of motor-sensed variability from self-generated actions are recast, as are their putative role in the development of motor-sensory-sensed maps of external stimuli present in social settings. This chapter offers a new lens for the research and treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders on a spectrum. This chapter thus proposes a general re-conceptualization of movement sensation and control. Through this a new framework for research and treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders in general we study ASD in particular.