One
controversial theory on the cognition of children with Autism Spectrum
Conditions (ASCs) is that these individuals lack theory of mind. This concept
was first explored by Baron-Cohen,
Leslie, and Frith (1985). They conducted experiments which demonstrated that
while most children with cognitive disabilities (i.e. Down Syndrome) were able
to answer a question based on the perspective of another, most children with
ASC were unable. Even the majority of children with ASC and normal IQ failed on these tasks. Baron-Cohen,
Leslie, and Frith (1985) stated that children who were able to pass simple
theory of mind tasks often failed the higher-order tasks.
According to Rajendran and Mitchell
(2007), theory of mind ability in children with ASC is dependent on language
development. Rajendran and Mitchell infer that because some children with ASC
are capable of theory of mind suggests that this is not a universal deficit in
autism. From my personal experience as
an individual with ASC and my work with children with autism, I believe that
theory of mind is more difficult for individuals with autism and is often
context-specific. For instance, people with ASC may be more capable of taking
the perspective of another for something they have experienced. For instance,
individuals may know how it feels to lose a pet and feel sympathy for a friend
in that situation, but be unable to relate to peers who experience difficulties
in romantic relationships if they have not experienced these feelings
themselves.
From my experience, I have found I
have a greater ability to relate to individuals with either an Autism Spectrum
Condition or similar cognitive style than I do to members of the general
population. When I work with children with autism, I understand the emotions
behind certain body language that would be considered stimming by most. For
instance, when working with a girl with severe autism who was non-verbal and
did show facial expressions, I was able to tell she was excited by what she saw
out the window because of the way she was waving her hand. I am also able to
recognize when a child with autism is becoming overstimulated before many of my
co-workers. Even for children who are non-verbal, some of their “language” is
my “native language.”
It is also possible that individuals with ASC may
also be able to take on the perspective of another easier in cases where that
individual is experiencing a simple versus complex emotion. For instance,
Temple Grandin has a great deal of insight into the emotional and cognitive
lives of livestock in her book Animals in
Translation. In her career in the animal industry, she is easily able to
empathize with the fear animals may experience in slaughterhouses and is able
to notice tiny details that make the process more humane for the animals
involved. However, I read in one of her books that she did not respond when a
fan with autism sent her a valentine. Even though she was not interested in the
fan, she would fail to recognize that a simple response might give this young
man a smile and that not responding may hurt his feelings.
Children and teenagers with autism may relate to
friends who are several years younger than they are. For instance, when I was a
teenager, I often played with the kids I babysat outside of work hours. I
preferred playing dolls and going on adventures in the woods over hanging out
with other teenagers. The children I babysat lost interest in children’s games
and wanted to move on to adolescence before I did.
From my
experience, many children with ASC do play pretend games. However, they are
more likely to pretend to be an animal, inanimate object, or character younger
than themselves. As a child, I spent many hours pretending to be a cat and copying
the movements of my own housecats as best I could. As an adult I spend some
time in the virtual world of Second Life and in his experience I have met other
adults with ASC who engage in online role play. Many of these individuals
choose to role play as child or fantasy characters rather than humans their
age. I believe this is due to the fact that they are unable to take the
perspective of an individual with complex emotions they have not experienced
themselves. However, children and adults with ASC are capable of pretense and
in the process, taking the perspective of another, unlike what was initially
believed by Baron-Cohen and Frith (1985).
Another consequence of limited
theory of mind in individuals with ASC is inability to understand when another
individual does not share their viewpoint. For instance, as a child and
teenager, I had very rigid religious and political beliefs and would get upset
talking to someone who had a different opinion if they would not conform to my
viewpoint. Also, individuals with ASC may fail to realize something enjoyable
to them is upsetting someone else. For instance, a child with ASC may continue
to have a “snowball fight” with a sibling after the sibling is crying and fail
to realize or be shocked by the fact that their sibling is no longer having
fun.
Lack of
theory of mind may also be inhibited by lack of ability to read facial
expressions and body language. For instance, when I was a young child, I would
not realize my parents were annoyed and wanted me to stop doing something until
they were yelling at me. It was not that I did not want to make my Mom and Dad
happy, but I had no ability to read annoyed facial expressions. If my parents
told me that something upset them and explained why, I would feel bad and
apologize.
It is my belief that Baron-Cohen and
Frith (1985) addressed a common developmental problem that is present in most
of children with autism. The degree of impairment likely varies between
individuals with ASC with some being more severely affected than others. Also,
as stated by Rajendran
and Mitchell (2007), language development likely plays a role, especially since
more language ability allows for teaching opportunities and explanations of
others’ feelings. Taking
the perspective of another is more difficult for children with ASC and occurs
later than in typically developing children or even children with other
developmental disabilities. However, having more difficulty with a cognitive
process does not mean total inability. Rajendran and Mitchell (2007),
coined the term “mindblindness.” Individuals
with ASC are not “mindblind” but “mind partial-sighted.” Just as glasses can
improve vision, maturation, repeated practice, and sometimes simply explaining
to them how another person is feeling, individuals with ASC can develop and
improve upon this ability.
References
Baron-Cohen, S.,
Leslie, A., & Frith, U. (1985). Does the autistic child have a theory of
mind? Cognition, 21, 37-46. http://login.ezproxy.library.ualberta.ca/login?url=http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0010027785900228
Rajendran, G., &
Mitchell, P. (2007). Cognitive theories of autism. Developmental Review, 27, 224-260. doi:
10.1016/j.dr.2007.02.001
3 comments:
Fascinating post. That's really interesting about the role play on Second Life. I had no idea about what you mentioned there regarding ASC. I understand your desire to intellectually understand your illness as I have Schizoaffective Disorder and am studying social work, hoping to work in the mental health field. I too try to understand the illness intellectually, and from an objective point of view.
My son does play pretend but he is usually a car. Grayson prefers to make his cars talk rather than dolls or people. He walks around my house calling himself a car and saying "beep beep i a car".
Excellent post and it matches my observations of my son.
He seems to be mind partial-sighted but not mindblind.
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