COGNITIVE: Baron-Cohen

Question 1

what were the aims?

Answer 1

to test a group of autistic adults to see if the revised eyes test ‘works’

to see if there’s an negative correlation between the eyes test and AQ test

to see if females score higher on the eyes test than males

Question 2

what were the hypotheses?

Answer 2

AS/HFA will score higher on the AQ test

AS/HFA will score lower on the eyes test

normal females (group 2&3) will score higher than males on the eyes test

normal males (group 2&3) will score higher than females on the AQ test

scores on the AQ and eyes test will be negatively correlated

Question 3

what is the AQ test?

Answer 3

a self report questionnaire with scores 0-50. the higher the score, the more autistic traits the person has

Question 4

what is the eyes test?

Answer 4

a test where a pair of eyes are shown and the person picks which emotion best matches the eyes. this tests adults whether they have theory of mind

Question 5

what is theory of mind?

Answer 5

the cognitive ability to empathize and understand the mental states of oneself and others

Question 6

what is autism?

Answer 6

the failure to develop particular cognitive processes linked to social interaction. they lack the cognitive ‘theory of mind’

Question 7

what are the changes from the original eyes test to the revised eyes test?

Answer 7

25 pairs of eyes - 36 pairs of eyes

basic & complex emotions - complex emotions only

2 options - 4 options

misunderstood words - glossary provided

more female eyes - 18 male and 18 female eyes

Question 8

ceiling effect:

Answer 8

when a test is too easy and everyone gets 100%

Question 9

research method and design

Answer 9

lab experiment

highly standardized procedure as all participants were tested in the same condition

quasi experiment

Question 10

what is the independent variable

Answer 10

the type of participant (autistic or not)

Question 11

what is the dependent variable

Answer 11

the eyes test and AQ results

Question 12

sample: group 1

Answer 12

AS/HFA group
15 males
average age: 29.7
average IQ: 115
volunteer sampling from the autistic society magazine

Question 13

sample: group 2

Answer 13

adult comparison group
122 participants
average age: 46.5
opportunity sampling from Cambridge library

Question 14

sample: group 3

Answer 14

student comparison group
103 participants (53 males and 50 females)
average age: 20.8
assumed high IQ
opportunity sampling from Cambridge university

Question 15

sampling: group 4

Answer 15

IQ matched group 
14 males
average age: 28 
average IQ: 116
random sampling

Question 16

what was the procedure?

Answer 16

all participants completed the revised eyes test
the AS/HFA group were asked to judge the sex of the pair of eyes

group 1,3 and 4 completed the AQ test and were given a glossary to read through and could revisit at any time during the test and weren’t timed on the test.

Question 17

how much did group 1 get in the eyes test?

Answer 17

21.9/36

Question 18

how much did group 2 get in the eyes test?

Answer 18

26.2/36

Question 19

how much did group 3 get in the eyes test?

Answer 19

28/36

Question 20

how much did group 4 get in the eyes test?

Answer 20

30.9/36

Question 21

how much did group 1 get in the AQ test?

Answer 21

34.4/50

Question 22

how much did group 2 get in the AQ test?

Answer 22

they didn’t do the test

Question 23

how much did group 3 get in the AQ test?

Answer 23

18.3/50

Question 24

how much did group 4 get in the AQ test?

Answer 24

18.9/50

Question 25

what were the conclusions?

Answer 25

people with AS/HFA have difficulty with cognitive processes and lack theory of mind

males have more autistic traits than females in the normal group