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The diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is based on behavioral observations. It is hard to make such a certain diagnosis before the age of three. However, the first years of life are a period marked by a great cerebral plasticity, during which therapeutic interventions are likely to yield major positive changes. The lack of social orientation (for example a reduction in eye movement) can be observed quite early in the development of infants with ASD. Several studies have shown a link between a lack of social orientation and the development of joint attention (i.e. the common interest of several people in the same object). Moreover, deficiencies in social orientation and in joint attention have consequences on the social and cognitive development of infants and toddlers. These results are discussed from a neurocognitive perspective, with implications for early diagnosis and early therapeutic interventions adapted to young children with ASD.