Yaxue Wu
Papers
1
Total Citations
50
H-Index
1
About
Dr. Yaxue Wu is a leading researcher in developmental cognitive neuroscience, with a focus on how children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) perceive and interact with social and technological stimuli. Her most influential work investigates the uncanny valley effect—the discomfort humans feel toward entities that appear almost, but not fully, human. In a landmark 2018 study, Dr. Wu demonstrated that typically developing children exhibit this effect, while children with ASD do not, revealing a fundamental difference in how autistic children process human-like features in robots and virtual characters. This finding, cited over 50 times, has profound implications for designing socially assistive technologies and interventions for ASD. By bridging robotics, virtual reality, and developmental psychology, Dr. Wu’s research advances our understanding of social cognition and informs the ethical, effective use of technology in therapeutic settings. Her work is essential reading for scholars in human-robot interaction, autism research, and cognitive development.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1