Empirical Failures of the Claim that Autistic People Lack a Theory of Mind
Gernsbacher and Yergeau (2019)
The claim that autistic people lack a theory of mind—that they fail to understand that other people have a mind or that they themselves have a mind— continues to be used in many therapeutic and academic environments. This article reviews evidence that fails to support the claim that autistic people are uniquely impaired on theory-of-mind tasks. It highlights original findings that have failed to be replicated. The authors outline multiple instances where the various theory-of-mind tasks fail to relate to each other and fail to account for autistic traits, social interaction, and empathy. The authors go on to summarize a large body of data, collected by researchers working outside the theory-of-mind concept, that does not support assertions made by those working inside the theory-of-mind concept. The article concludes that the concept that Autistic people lack a theory of mind is empirically questionable and societally harmful.
