COGNITIVE APPROACH- Baron and Cohen (THEORY OF MIND) Flashcards
state the psychology being investigated (terms)
- theory of mind
- Social sensitivity : the 2 stages
- autism : This study suggested that those with ASD lack/ have an underdeveloped cognitive process called the theory of mind
What is theory of mind
- The ability to determine the mental state of ourselves and others.
- is linked to social sensitivity
- it is also about how we use this ability to explain the behaviours of others and understand them
- this knowledge can help with predicting peoples actions
Identify the 2 stages that attributed to the theory of mind
STAGE 1: Attributes of relevant mental state e.g compassion
STAGE 2: Inferring to the content of that mental state e.g compassion for loss.
What is the methodological basis of this study
-Psychometric tests
-Self reports (Close ended )
what is the background of the study
it was found difficult to get a test that could measure a cognitive dysfunction in adults with a typical IQ however impaired social understanding.
Investigating whether adults with ASD have troubles with theory of mind. Using their first version of ‘Reading the mind in the eyes’ Task
-The improvements made
- The judges criteria for selecting foils
How did the eyes task help investigate theory of mind
It was believed to use the cognitive processes associated with a theory of mind as participants needed to empathise with the person in the photograph in order to figure out their emotional state
Improvements made:
The questions were forced choice with only 2 choice options And were opposite in meaning /semantic opposites
The number of options for responding increased to four and were not opposites but instead same valence as the target word.
improvements made:
only 25 sets of eyes were used leading to ceiling effects
-Were increased to 36 sets of eyes
Improvements made:
The eyes showed basic emotions and complex and were too easy
Only used complex emotions
Improvements made:
The emotions could be gazed by simply looking at the direction of the eyes
These were removed from the set
improvements made:
Imbalance of male and female eyes (more female eyes)
Equal distribution of both genders
Improvements made:
Some words in the choices were hard for participants to understand
There was a glossary introduced which had the emotions listed with their meanings.
What was the main aim of the study
To investigate whether the ‘revised’ eyes test would show a clear impairment in a group of adults with ASD to assess its effectiveness.
What were the 5 hypothesis/ predictions that they were testing
> Adults with HFA/AS will score significantly lower in the eyes test compared to the control group
Adults with HFA/AS will score significantly higher in the AQ test than the control group
Females in the ‘normal’ groups would score higher in the eyes test than males
Males in the normal group will score higher in the AQ test than females
Results of the eyes tests are negatively correlated with the AQ test (-0.53)
What does the AQ test stand for
Autistic spectrum Quotient test
what were the IVs of the study
-the condition of the participants (AS/HFA Vs Non autistic)
-the different emotions displayed
What was the DV of the study
The score from the eyes test and AQ test
what type of experiment was this
natural experiment /Quasi experiment
what is an independent measures design
This is where different participants are used in each condition of the study
What’s a weakness of Independent measures design
Individual differences between the participants
How was IQ tested and why was it tested
Using the WAIS-R
- To prove that there was no link between a persons IQ and their Theory of mind
Give 5 features of GRP 1
- all male
- all met the requirement of AS/ HFA
- Average IQ of 115
- Were 15 in total
- all were diagnosed by the American psychiatric association
- average age of 29
- Volunteer sampling through National Autistic Society magazine and support groups
- similar socioeconomic and educational background as group 2
Give 5 features of GRP 2
- Were not diagnosed with AS/HFA
- Was 122 in total
- average age of 46
- Mixed gendered and same socioeconomic background as GRP 1 and education
- Opportunity sampling from the community and educational classes in Exeter
- Broad range of occupations
Give 3 features of GRP 3
- Were 103 in total : 50 female, 53 male
- average age 20
- Opportunity sampling from the university of Cambridge
- Had a high IQ
Give 3 features of GRP 4 (IQ Matched control group)
- Were selected from the general population through Random sampling
- average age 28
- Had a matched IQ with GRP 1 (116)
- Were 14 in total
in Baron Cohen et al, what were foil words
These were the incorrect options that participants could chose to describe the eyes
What was criteria 1&2 in the study
- This involved 8 independent judges
- at least 5 judges had to pick the target word for it to be selected
- No more than 2 judges can pick the foil (discarded)
- The other criteria was with Group 2 and 3
- items were used if 50% of the 225 participants selected the target word
- Nothing more than 25% picking the same foil (discarded )
- This dropped from 40 sets to 36 sets of eyes
Briefly review the procedure of the eyes test
> Participants were given a glossary to read through
They were then shown a practice item
The were shown the sets of eyes
For each of sets of eyes, they had to chose the correct emotion being displayed from a set of 4 possibilities
what was the control task for GRP 1
the gender recognition task
Why was the control task carried out
This is in order to show that participants in GRP 1 can correctly identify the characteristics of the eyes used and were not fully dependent on theory of mind
why was a pilot study carried out
In order to check the validity and reliability of the study
what are the 3 conclusions
- Those with AS/HFA indicate a specific deficit in the theory of mind
- males are more likely to show AS/HFA characteristics than females
- shows that the eyes test is a more sensitive measure of adult social intelligence than in previous studies.
what are 2 strengths in the study
- The validity increased due to the improvements made from the previous study. (internal validity)
- the use of the eye test can be used to test for reliability due to the improvements made leading to reliable results.
- no order effects, test was taken once
- quantitative data
What are the 3 weaknesses of the study
- the number of participants in GRP 1 are very few
- Lacked ecological validity- pictures were static
-There could be a confounding variable of individual differences due to the allocation of participants. - Validity decreases from questionnaire
- No qualitative data
What made this study ethical strong
- informed consent
- confidentiality
- debrief
what made the study ethically weak
- A lack of understanding of the words may cause embarrassment or distress
List ways of how this study can be seen as useful
+An easy tool for identifying those with HFA/AS and those who dont.
+The eyes test shows that males and females have a difference in recognising emotions therefore can be used in types of jobs/ careers
+Diagnosis & predictions
+Therapists can help those with HFA/AS improve their social intelligence skills by using this tool explaining why each emotion has been shown
+ Can be used for those who have brain damage to detect if there was any social sensitivity deficits.
List ways this study can be seen as un-useful
-Cannot be generalised to children with HFA/AS as this only tested on adults
-It is unrealistic/ artificial. Pictures were static and hence can’t be fully applicable.
Identify 2 of the 4 tests from the WAIS-R used to assess IQ in the AS/HFA group.
- Block design
- Vocabulary
- Similarities
- Picture completion
Describe this study in terms of reliability.
The revised version was more reliable than the original since the
deficit in the AS/HFA found in the original study was replicated.
o All predictions were confirmed.
o The AQ and Eyes tests were both psychometric test proven to be
valid and reliable.
- All items from the Eyes test were the same such as the same size, black and white and same emotions
Describe the AQ test
- Likert scale
- Had 50 statements
- No right or wrong statements
- 4 options: Definitely / slightly agree—- Definitely / slightly disagree ( scores higher than 33 showed autism)
State the results for the Eyes test
Grp 1- 21/36
Grp2- 26/36
Grp 3- 28/36
Grp 4 -30/36
State the results for the AQ test
Grp 1-34.3/ 50
Grp 2- Did NOT take test
Grp 3- 18.3/50
Grp 4- 18.9/ 50
What is social sensitivity?
The ability to understand social cues and contexts when interacting with others
Individual vs Situational explanation
Individual: autism itself is an individual difference between people that affects their ability to understand different mental states
Situational: HFA/AS adults may be better at recognising peoples mental states in certain situations, e.g if were given more time
