Autism

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that, in general, autism is a disorder, which affects communication skills and responding skills of those affected. It examines how the behaviors fall on a continuum: Some with autism show high language ability but low social ability; others show low language abilities and high social skills. The author points out that the theory of mind concept is the ability to infer the full range of mental states, which cause action, such as desire, intention, imagination and emotion. The paper concludes that, by encouraging and teaching autistic individuals to better understand themselves and those around them, treatment programs can give the autistic individual the tools necessary to improve their communication skills, learning, social skills and other aspects of interaction with the environment.

From the Paper:

"The theory of mind idea applies to autism, in that many researchers believe that individuals with autism have an undeveloped or underdeveloped theory of mind. In other words, they are not able to infer, predict, or have any concept of the mental states of others. By not being able to do this, autistic individuals have problems relating to others, and communicating with others. Additionally, those with autism have difficulty understanding that the thoughts and emotions of their peers are different from their own."

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