Peole with Asperger's less likely to see purpose behind life events

[velkyn]

http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=people-with-aspergers-less-likely-t-2010-05-29

Bethany T. Heywood, a graduate student at Queens University Belfast, asked 27 people with Asperger’s Syndrome, a mild type of autism that involves impaired social cognition, about significant events in their lives. Working with experimental psychologist Jesse M. Bering (author of the "Bering in Mind" blog and a frequent contributor to Scientific American MIND), she asked them to speculate about why these important events happened—for instance, why they had gone through an illness or why they met a significant other. As compared with 34 neurotypical people, those with Asperger’s syndrome were significantly less likely to invoke a teleological response—for example, saying the event was meant to unfold in a particular way or explaining that God had a hand in it. They were more likely to invoke a natural cause (such as blaming an illness on a virus they thought they were exposed to) or to give a descriptive response, explaining the event again in a different way.

[singlecrochet]

See, it just goes to show that those on the Autism Spectrum are actually the smart ones.  It's all the 'normal' people who are delusional.

[pamindfw]

Interesting article.

"Some experts theorize that certain schizophrenia symptoms (for instance, paranoia) arise in part from a hyperactive sense of social reasoning. “I’d guess that they’d give lots of teleological answers; more than neurotypical people, and certainly far more than people with Asperger’s,” Heywood says."

My mother is a schizophrenic.  She sees complex plots behind receiving a hang up call.  I tell her: it was just a wrong number, they didn't recognize your voice. It happens to all of us. 

So I see a gradient:

No teliological thinking -- Antiteliological thinking -- Teliological thinking -- Extreme teliological thinking
Humans with Asperger's        Atheist Humans           Religious humans        Schizophrenics

              ?                     rational and practical      somewhat irrational        totally irrational               

[Jim]

So I see a gradient:

No teliological thinking -- Antiteliological thinking -- Teliological thinking -- Extreme teliological thinking
Humans with Asperger's        Atheist Humans           Religious humans        Schizophrenics

              ?                     rational and practical      somewhat irrational        totally irrational               

pamindfw, maybe in your gradient, atheists (non-religious) might be better described as "more rational and practical", as it was pointed out that their answers hinted that they still had the social-groupthink still wedged in their heads.  Perhaps the mild Asberger is the "rational" of the lot.  I don't know how they rate on a practicality scale. 

A more interesting experiment is to see how Asberger's deal with social memes in general.

velkyn: nice find.  Thanks.

[pamindfw]

pamindfw, maybe in your gradient, atheists (non-religious) might be better described as "more rational and practical", as it was pointed out that their answers hinted that they still had the social-groupthink still wedged in their heads.  Perhaps the mild Asberger is the "rational" of the lot.  I don't know how they rate on a practicality scale. 

A more interesting experiment is to see how Asberger's deal with social memes in general.

you're right, I agree.

I'm pretty awkward socially, and have given up trying to fit in.  I doubt I have asberger's, it just didn't help being raised by a mother who is schizophrenic.

 In the article they mentioned the human with asbergers response to questions about why they got ill as possibly a virus they came in contact with.  Sounds totally rational to me.

Anyway, thanks for your input, and thanks velkyn for the article.  I love this stuff.

[velkyn]

no problem. I'm fairly certain that I would have been diagnosed with Aspbergers if I was a kid now.  I just used my "mighty intellect" to learn etiquette and that generally gets me through.  I agree, even anedcotally, there is little different from schizophrenics and the extremely religious. 

[One Above All]

Aren't people with autism supposed to be geniuses?
This proves which position is the one for smart people

[Immediacracy]

Aren't people with autism supposed to be geniuses?
This proves which position is the one for smart people

Both extremes of this continuum are linked to genius. Bipolar disorder and schizophrenia too.

Excerpted from “Creativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention"  by Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi

   1. Creative individuals have a great deal of physical energy, but they are also often quiet.
   2. Creative individuals tend to be smart, yet also naïve at the same time.
   3. A third paradoxical trait refers to the related combination of playfulness and discipline.
   4. Creative individuals alternate between imagination and fantasy at one end, and a rooted sense of reality at the other.
   5. Creative people seem to harbor opposite tendencies on the continuum between extroversion and introversion, seem to express both traits at the same time.
   6. Creative individuals are also remarkably humble and proud at the same time.
   7. Creative individuals to a certain extent escape rigid gender stereotyping.
   8. Generally, creative people are thought to be rebellious and independent as well as cultured/traditionalist.
   9. Most creative people are very passionate about their work, yet they can be extremely objective about it as well.
  10. The openness and sensitivity of creative individuals often exposes them to suffering and pain yet also a great deal of enjoyment.

ref (article)

[Operator_011]

The discussion over suitability of the “artwork” (and the collage itself) have been split-off into their own topic.

Please continue the discussion here.

Thanks.


Eleven.