Mind-blindness
From Autism Wiki
Mind-blindness can be described as an inability to develop an awareness of what is in another person's mind. It is not necessarily caused by an inability to imagine an answer, but is often due to not being able to gather enough information to work out which of the many possible answers is correct.
Much of the information is gathered by reading body language and so a person with a pervasive developmental disorder such as autism or Asperger syndrome would be at least partially mind-blind due to their inability to read, or impairment in reading body language.
In its issue of 31st July, 2000, Newsweek has published an article by Simon Baron-Cohen which described mind-blindness in these words: "What, ultimately, makes autistic people different? How do they experience the world? Twenty years ago no one had much of a clue. But a burgeoning body of research now suggests that the core of all autism is a syndrome known as mindblindness. For most of us, mind reading comes as naturally as walking or chewing. We readily deduce what other people know and what they don't, and we understand implicitly that thoughts and feelings are revealed in gestures, facial expressions and tone of voice. An autistic person may sense none of this."[1]
In a book named Mindblindness: an essay on autism and theory of mind (ISBN: 026252225X) by Simon Baron-Cohen and others, the authors postulates "a model of the evolution and development of "mindreading". It argues that we mindread all the time, automatically and, for the most part, unconsciously. It is the natural way in which we interpret, predict and participate in social behaviour and communication. People ascribe mental states to other people, states such as thoughts, desires, knowledge and intentions." Further, based on studies and researches over many years, they conclude that "children with autism suffer from "mindblindness" as a result of a selective impairment in mindreading."
[edit] See also
[edit] Further reading
- Mindblindness: An Essay on Autism and Theory of Mind by Simon Baron-Cohen
[edit] References
- Simon Baron-Cohen, "First lessons in mind reading," The Times Higher Education Supplement, July 16, 1995.
