AS Psychology: Cognitive Approach So far you have considered1) Loftus & Palmer (1974) –
Reconstruction of automobile destruction
2) Savage-Rumbaugh et al. (1986) – Spontaneous Symbol Acquisition and Communicative Use by Pygmy Chimpanzees
3) ….
Baron Cohen et al (1997) – Another Advanced Test of Theory of Mind
Learning Objective Question:
How could you test for Theory of Mind (TOM) in adults with autism & Asperger syndrome & what might be the issues?
Baron Cohen et al (1997) – Another Advanced Test of Theory of Mind
What do you know about autism?
THINK-PAIR-SHARE (in your group, 1 - 3)
Who is Simon Baron-Cohen?
What is Theory of Mind (TOM)?
Learning Objective Question:
How could you test for TOM in adults with autism & Asperger syndrome & what might be the
issues?
Success Criteria:1) Describe autism.
2) Explain who Simon Baron-Cohen is.
3) Describe TOM.
4) Outline the Sally-Anne test & an issue with it..
5) Outline the eyes task including strengths and weaknesses.
Starter:THINK – PAIR - SHARE
What is autism? You have 2 minutes to mind-map everything you
know about autism (THINK).Once you have done this work with a partner to share your ideas. The best ideas should be written on a post-it note and stuck on the white-board.
(PAIR – SHARE)
Prior Cognitive Knowledge:Loftus & Palmer (complete) & Savage-Rumbaugh (started)
How could we test for a lack of TOM in children? What about in adults?
What are the issues with such a study?
Extended learning:How might you answer this question from the January 2009 (section B)
- Suggest how your chosen study could be improved. [8]- Outline the implications of the improvements you have
suggested for your chosen study. [8]
Name: Task: Understanding Theory of Mind (TOM) in adults with autism & Aspergers syndrome (AS)
The real Rain Man (2mins 50sec) ‘get a
grip of yourself’
Daniel Tammet
Memorised 12,000 books.
Could read two pages at a time using one eye for each page.
Could recall 98% of everything that he ever experienced in perfect detail.
Theory of Mind “Developing a theory of
mind allows the child to begin to understand other people & to predict what other people are likely to do & believe”.
Baron-Cohen, 1997
Professor of Developmental Psychopathology at the University of Cambridge
Baron-Cohen, Leslie and Frith (1985)
The Sally-Anne Test - The autistic child's inability to employ a theory of mind. How does this test
work & what is it exactly testing?
The Sally-Anne Test The Sally-Anne was for children (up to a
mental age of 6). But what about high functioning adults with autism and Asperger syndrome?
Baron Cohen et al (1997) – Another Advanced Test of Theory of Mind
Learning Objective Question (re-cap):
How could you test for theory of mind in adults with autism & Asperger syndrome & what might be the problems?
If you can think of any good strengths or weaknesses of the whole study write it on a post-it note and put it on the whiteboard!
Procedure: 4 tasks 1) The Eyes Task (complete today)2) Strange Stories Task (complete today)
(control tasks)3) Gender Recognition Task 4) Basic Emotion Recognition Task
Consider these whilst reading the full study (H/W task)
Group 1
- 16 participants with high functioning autism or Asperger syndrome
- 13M & 3F
- Age range 18-49 years
- All of normal intelligence
- Recruited using an advert in the National Autistic Society magazine as well as through clinics
Group 2
- 50 normal (age-matched) adults
- 25M & 25F
- Age range 18-48 years
- Selected from general population of Cambridge (no students)
- No history of any psychiatric condition & assumed to have normal IQ
Group 3
- 10 participants (age-matched) with Tourette's syndrome
- 8M & 2F (mirroring the sex ratio of group 1)
- Age range 18-47 years
- Recruited from a referral centre in London
- Normal IQ
Was the sample representative of all people with Autism/AS? How does this affect the conclusions that can be drawn?
Task 2 - Strange Stories Task (Happe, 1994)
Read the following:
Ann's mother has spent a long time cooking Ann's favourite meal: fish and chips. But when she brings it in, Ann is watching TV, and she doesn't even look up or say thank you. Ann's mother is cross and says ‘Well that's very nice, isn't it! That's what I call politeness!’
Question 1 - Is it true what Ann's mother says? Question 2 - Why does Ann's mother say this? Question 3 – Is any irony experienced?
Why is this a test for TOM & What results would you expect to see based on your group?
Task 1 - The Eyes Task There are 5 photos (in the actual test
there were 25) On the bottom of the photos are two
‘mental state’ terms You have 3 seconds to look at the
picture and record (A or B) which mental state the person is displaying
Picture 1
Which word term describes what this person is thinking or feeling
Serious or PlayfulA B
Picture 2
Which word term describes what this person is thinking or feeling
Reflective or UnreflectiveA B
Picture 3
Which term best describes what this person is thinking or feeling
Sympathetic or UnsympatheticA B
Picture 4
Which word term describes what this person is thinking or feeling
Decisive or IndecisiveA B
Picture 5
Which word term describes what this person is thinking or feeling
Certain or UncertainA B
Task 1 Answers - The Eyes Task (answers underlined)
- Picture 1 = Serious or Playful
- Picture 2 = Reflective or Unreflective
- Picture 3 = Sympathetic or Unsympathetic
- Picture 4 = Decisive or Indecisive
- Picture 5 = Certain or Uncertain
- Group ___ Score: ___/5
A B
Findings: out of 25
Task 1: What results would you expect to see based on your group?
Eyes Task Autistic (G1) Normal (G2) Tourettes (G3)
Mean ? ? ?
Findings: out of 25
Task 1: What results would you expect to see based on your group?
Eyes Task Autistic (G1) Normal (G2) Tourettes (G3)
Mean 16.3 20.3 20.4
Eyes task and strange stories task:- All groups completed the eyes task- Only groups 1 and 3 the strange stories
Why do you think this would be?
Eyes task and strange stories task:- All groups completed the eyes task- Only groups 1 and 3 the strange stories
Why do you think this would be?
It demonstrates validity of the eyes task as a test for TOM.
If a valid test then the performance of the eyes task should correlate with the performance of the strange stories task (concurrent validity)
Task 1 - The Eyes Task (questions) Imagine you had to explain to a friend
what Theory of Mind is. As a group write a definition for this term.
Task 1 - The Eyes Task (questions) In your groups evaluate the task (remember your
level of response should reflect your target grade!).
Some points to consider:- Does it actually test TOM?- What type of data is being collected? What are the
strengths and weaknesses of this?- Is the task ecologically valid? If not what are the strengths
and weaknesses of investigating in a way that is not representative of everyday situations?
- How would you change this task? How might this affect the outcome and conclusions of study?
Final thoughts… If you could ask Baron-Cohen one question about
his work what would it be?
Do you think this study is useful?
What one thing do you want to know about autism?
Why is this within the cognitive approach?
What could be the cause of autism and should we try and cure it?
Homework Task:January 2009 (section B)
Suggest how your chosen study could be improved. [8]
Outline the implications of the improvements you have suggested for your chosen study. [8]
- Read the full study- Think about how you would answer these
questions.
Baron Cohen et al (1997) – Another Advanced Test of Theory of Mind
Learning Objective Question (re-cap):
How could you test for theory of mind in adults with autism & Asperger syndrome & what might be the problems?
If you can think of any good strengths or weaknesses of the whole study write it on a post-it note and put it on the whiteboard!
Exam Questions:The Eyes Task2009 - 2013
January 2009 (section A) Describe two of these groups. [4]
January 2009 (section B) Answer the following questions (choice of 3 studies):
Briefly outline the previous research or event which was the stimulus for your chosen study. [2]
Describe how the sample in your chosen study was selected and suggest one advantage of using this sample. [6]
Explain why your chosen study can be considered a laboratory experiment. [6]
Give one advantage and one disadvantage of conducting your chosen study in a laboratory. [6]
Suggest how your chosen study could be improved. [8]
Outline the implications of the improvements you have suggested for your chosen study. [8]
- Total 36
May 2009 (section A) Identify one difference between the
performance of the autistic adults and the Tourette Syndrome adults. [2]
Outline what this study tells us about advanced theory of mind. [2]
January 2010 (section A) The autistic and Asperger Syndrome
participants were found to be unimpaired on two control tasks: Describe these two control tasks [4]
June 2010 (section A) Identify one of the word pairs in the ‘Eyes
Task’. [2]
Outline one finding from the ‘Eyes Task’. [2]
January 2011 (section A) Describe how two of the groups of
participants were selected. [4]
June 2011 (section A) Identify the two control groups used. [2]
Explain why one of these control groups was used. [2]
January 2012 (section A) Identify the independent variable (IV)
and the dependent variable (DV) in the Eyes Task. [2]
Explain why this study is considered a quasi-experiment. [2]
May 2012 (section A) Outline two of the ways the participants
were tested. [4]
January 2013 (section A) Explain the term quasi experiment in
relation to this study. [4]
