Theory of mind and Autism

Question 1

What is Autism or Autism Spectrum DIsorder?

Answer 1

A life long neurodevelopmental condition

Question 2

How does Autism affect people’s lives?

Answer 2

They have difficulty with social reciporcity, communciation and repetiive or restrictive behaviour

Question 3

Why do babbies have an innate preference for social stimuli?

Answer 3

• Prefer to look at human face than non social objects, mianly if eyes are open (Batki et al, 2000)
• Enahcned ERPs in occiptial face processing areas for direct eye contact in comparison to averted gaze (Grossman et al, 2007)

Question 4

When was the earliest manifestation of Theory of Mind in “Joint Attention” by Butterowrh and Jarret (1991)

Answer 4

18 months

Question 5

What is joint attention?

Answer 5

Spontaneously following pointing gestures and eye gaze direction of others

Question 6

What challenges do children with autism face with joint attention?

Answer 6

They show atypical joint attention as toddlers

Question 7

What tasks do children with autism struggle with as they grow from 6 - 7

Answer 7

Unable to understand when someone is jooking or being ironic as to a child that is neurotypical

Question 8

What tasks do children with austim struggle with from age 9 - 10?

Answer 8

Unable to judge mental states by examining eyes of others compared to neurotypical children

Question 9

What is Cognitive Theory of Mind?

Answer 9

Ability to identify/recongise antoher person’s mental state

Question 10

What is Affective Theory of Mind?

Answer 10

Having an appropriate emotional reaction to other people’s thoughts and feelings

Question 11

Who suggested the congitive and affective Theory of Mind (ToM)?

Answer 11

Baron-Cohen (2009)

Question 12

Why is eye gaze so important in Theory of Mind?

Answer 12

• People look where they are attending
• Minding reading (looking where others are attending) is important
• Allows to predict others behaviour
• Share others mental state (Joint attention)

Question 13

What is STS involved in?

Answer 13

Integrating biological motion (e.g gaze direction) with mental states

Question 14

What does Superior Temporal Sulcus do?

Answer 14

• Interprests meaning of gaze stimuli to determine whether it is goal orintated

Question 15

What is the result of Superior Temporal Suclus (STS)in people with autism?

Answer 15

• STS is still activated by agaze cues and reproted by people but STS does not differntiate ebtween goal-oriented and non-goal oriented behaviour

Question 16

What is Menatlizing (shifting mental perspectives)?

Answer 16

• Self: How likely you to think to think
• Other- How likely are others to think

Question 17

What is physical (doesn’t involve shifting mental perspectives)?

Answer 17

Self - How likely you are to be or have something
- Others - How likely are others to be or have something

Question 18

What is cognitive empathy?

Answer 18

Understanding what others are feeling

Question 19

What is cognitive empathy?

Answer 19

Understanding what others are feeling

Question 20

What is emotional empathy?

Answer 20

Feeling what others are feeling

Question 21

What happens in the brains of BPD in cognitive and emotional empathy tasks?

Answer 21

Multifaceted empath test
- Cognitive empathy
- Affective empathy (how much are you feeling for the person)

Question 22

What was concluded in BDP in regards to cognitive empathy

Answer 22

Reduced STS activation - Cognitive impairment

Question 23

What was concluded in BDP in regards to emotional empathy

Answer 23

• Increased STS and insula activation
• Increased autonomic arousal

Question 24

What is the Medialprefrontal cortex (MPFC) subdivided into?

Answer 24

• Dorsal MPFC
• Ventral MPFC

Question 25

What did Mitchell et al 2004 state occured to the Medialprefrontal cortex (MPFC)?

Answer 25

MPFC activates when forming impressions of others

Question 26

What are the two conditions for MPFC to activate when forming impressions of others?

Answer 26

- Make personality judgement (as in the image) - Rememebr the order in which the statements were presented

Question 27

How does the Ventral MPFC and Dorsal MPFC? gets activated?

Answer 27

- Thinking about similar others activated ventral MPFC - Thinking about dissimilar others activated dorsal MPFC

Question 28

What does less difference in vMPFC activation between self/other mentalizing conditions?

Answer 28

Causes more impairment

Question 29

What does anode do in tDCs?

Answer 29

Causes deplorisation of neurons and enhances excitability

Question 30

What does the cathode do in tDCS?

Answer 30

Causes hyperpolarisation and reduces excitability

Question 31

What improves Theory of Mind in autisitic children?

Answer 31

tDCs in vMPFC (Salehinejad et al. 2021)

Question 32

Castelli et al., 2002 – fMRI study show?

Answer 32

- Compared BOLD response in mentalizing condition to when shapes moved at random

Question 33

What did autisitic P show durng mentalizing condition?

Answer 33

Reduced activity in MPFC and STS

Question 34

What is the four domains of impairment?

Answer 34

- Emotional - Behavioural - Cognitive - Interpersonal

Question 35

What is a heterogenous phenotype?

Answer 35

BPD appears differetnly across patients (126 combinations of 5 citera possible)

Question 36

How many symptoms of BDP needed for diagnosis?

Answer 36

5

Question 37

What is the Biosocial model?

Answer 37

Acknowledges biological predispositions and interactions with developmental environment in  bringing about BPD

Question 38

What is the equation of the Biosocial model?

Answer 38

Biology (Impulsivity + emotional sensitivity) + Environment (Developmental environmental factors) = BPD

Question 39

What is hypermentalizing?

Answer 39

Congitive impairment - attributions of mental states to others are negatively biased

Question 40

What is insula (insular cortex)?

Answer 40

- Involved in emotion procssing located undr the lateral sulcus below the STS

Question 41

What is the negative vs neutral contract in the fMRI Data discovered by Frick?

Answer 41

In the left amygdala, BPD participants showed greater BOLD activation than the HC group

Question 42

What is the positive vs neutral contract in the fMRI Data discovered by Frick?

Answer 42

- In the right amygdala BPD participants showed greater BOLD activation than the HC group

Question 43

What was concluded from Frick's fMRI data?

Answer 43

- Increased amygdala activation in BPD group - Increased speed and accuracy in determining mental states in the RMTE task in BPD group

Question 44

What is the issue with emotional processing tasks?

Answer 44

Low in ecological validity and not arousing

Question 45

What did Sharp learn about ecological valdity?

Answer 45

Mentalizing under higher ecological validyt have shown hypermentalizing responses

Question 46

What results did Dziobek obtain in regards to congitive empath against control taks?

Answer 46

Controls: increased activity in left STS (and STG) BPD: no difference - Lack of activation in STS negaitvely correlated with degree of intrusive thoughts in BPD group

Question 47

What results did Dziobek obtain in regards to emotional empathy against control task?

Answer 47

- BPD:  increased activation right STS and insula Controls: no difference The more arousal (as measured by skin conductance) the greater the insula activity in patients

Question 48

What did Dziobek conclude about BPD patients?

Answer 48

Under and over activated STS

Question 49

What was the results Dziobek found about Cognitve Empathy task?

Answer 49

- Under activated STS - Could contribute to impairments in ToM

Question 50

What was the results Dziobek found about emotional empathy tasks?

Answer 50

- Over activated STS and insula - Increased autonomic arousal - Linked to emotional sensitivity