Published on 12, July, 2020
I wonder if any other people on the forum are as interested in - and fascinated by - the various theories of social cognition, as I am. At the heart of individual autistic experience and the socio-cultural conceptualisation of autism, social cognition surely plays a major experiential role in our lives.
Like many others, on being diagnosed I researched, ‘what is autism?’ Quickly one is presented with ‘Theory of Mind’ or Mindreading. Further research reveals, ‘Theory Theory of Mind’ and Simulation Theory of Mind .’ Then there are various phenomenological accounts that could be categorised as ‘Social Cognition without Mindreading.’ There are many other theories and innumerable syntheses thereof.
A further question must be asked, how much of social cognition has neuro-genetic underpinnings? Is there just a basic genetic toolkit that permits acquisition? Or are some aspects of social cognition hardwired?
One could argue that, experientially it make no difference which of the multitude of theories is correct. Although surely for therapeutic interventions to be successful, one could equally argue that the success of any such intervention would depend - at least in part - on knowing what is hardwired and what is not.
In ‘Why We Cooperate’, Michael Tomasello noted that because of the variations in inter-group behaviour and social cognition we have the concept of culture. Culture exists precisely because there are cultural differences. From an anthropological view point, autism could be regarded as an intra-culture variation. Our social cognitive differences don’t allow full integration in to the prevailing culture in which we are situated.
Just wondering if anyone else thinks about this stuff - or if I’m on a typical, solitary, autistic journey.
I think that autism should be seen a developing difference in the evolutionary path of humanity and based on previous evolutionary trajectories, who knows why? I can only give an educated guess and guiding comment that we are not all the same and this is not a bad thing. We need difference in humanity to complete all the different jobs that are required. We are like a beehive, but we are not bees. We are humans and we do not fully understand our selves or our planet. We can teach each other love (charity), patience, understanding and striving for the best in us all, always hoping, always considering how we can be the best we can be as humans, for the good of us all. Whatever people say about people who have autism or people who don’t (and it must also be remembered that quite a lot of intelligent people think that ‘we’re all there somewhere), I have found that people who are said to have autism are generally more loving, more honest, simpler, more childlike, more innocent, and many other good things. We can all strive for the qualities that will fit us for heaven.