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ERIC Number: EJ1448798
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024-Nov
Pages: 18
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1368-2822
EISSN: EISSN-1460-6984
Cross-Neurotype Communication from an Autistic Point of View: Insights on Autistic Theory of Mind from a Focus Group Study
Eleonora Marocchini; Irene Baldin
International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, v59 n6 p2465-2482 2024
Background: The conceptualisation of autism as a disorder where Theory of Mind (ToM) and pragmatics are fundamentally impaired has prompted a wealth of research on autistic deficits, most of which is characterised by two main assumptions: first, that autistic people would display said deficits, if present, with any conversation partner and in any situation; second, that neurotypical people do not present these deficits, regardless of the conversation partner. However, this is not necessarily reflected in autistic accounts of the way they experience social cognition and pragmatics. Aims: The present paper aims to investigate the autistic experience of communication with both autistic and neurotypical people, with a particular focus on their perception of the ability of autistic and neurotypical people to understand their communicative intentions. Methods & Procedures: Participants, 23 adult Italian autistic people without intellectual disability or language disorders, were recruited online. Two virtual focus groups of 2 hours each were conducted, transcribed and analysed through thematic analysis with a descriptive phenomenological approach by two independent researchers. Outcomes & Results: Six themes were developed from the analysis, the most relevant being Autistic-Autistic communication and Autistic ToM. The results, in line with the Double Empathy theory, suggest there seem to be important differences between neurotypical and autistic people's ToM. These appear to make it easier for autistic people to communicate with one another, as well as to create difficulties for neurotypical people to understand autistic people, not just the other way around. Conclusions & Implications: These results seem to confirm that challenges in cross-neurotype communication are better interpreted as mutual miscomprehension and reciprocal differences in ToM rather than deficits on the autistic part. This calls for a reframing of ToM and/or the need for autistic ToM as a construct, of which neurotypical people seem to be lacking. Moreover, these insights should be taken into account for speech and language therapy and clinical practice in general, advocating for a neurodiversity-informed view of co-constructed communication as well as for a broader societal change in which therapists can play a crucial role, through participatory approaches or raising awareness in their daily practice.
Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2191/en-us
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Italy
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Data File: URL: https://osf.io/p8ubr