Exploring the influence of ownership history on object valuation in typical development and autism

Abstract

Exploring the influence of ownership history on object valuation in typical development and autism.

Does Autism Affect Children’s Identification of Ownership and Defence of Ownership Rights?

“…These findings suggest that ownership-induced connections to the self do not irrationally bias how children with ASD evaluate objects, indicating the absence of an extremely robust cultural phenomenon that influences both the psychology of identity and economics (Belk 1988(Belk , 2000. Across two experiments in Hartley et al (2020a), TD children perceived items belonging to famous owners (e.g. Winnie the Pooh's honey jar) to be more valuable than similar items belonging to non-famous owners (e.g.…”

“…Together, the results of these studies suggest that children with ASD evaluate objects via an unusual strategy that prioritises material qualities over ownership history; they appear to be more concerned by what an object is rather than whom it is associated with. Hartley et al (2020a) propose that because ownership is a cultural convention (Kanngiesser et al 2015;Sparks et al 2016), decreased social motivation and social-cognitive difficulties that characterise ASD may reduce the frequency and quality of interactions through which children learn ownership norms (APA 2013;Chevallier et al 2012). Furthermore, early differences in self-other understanding (Lind 2010) may reduce the psychological importance of property ownership to children with ASD (Hartley and Fisher 2018a;Hartley et al 2020a).…”

“…Hartley et al ( 2020a ) propose that because ownership is a cultural convention (Kanngiesser et al 2015 ; Sparks et al 2016 ), decreased social motivation and social-cognitive difficulties that characterise ASD may reduce the frequency and quality of interactions through which children learn ownership norms (APA 2013 ; Chevallier et al 2012 ). Furthermore, early differences in self-other understanding (Lind 2010 ) may reduce the psychological importance of property ownership to children with ASD (Hartley and Fisher 2018a ; Hartley et al 2020a ). Children with ASD can have difficulty encoding and retrieving personally experienced events and information (e.g.…”

Does autism affect children’s identification of ownership and defence of ownership rights?

“…These findings suggest that ownership-induced connections to the self do not irrationally bias how children with ASD evaluate objects, indicating the absence of an extremely robust cultural phenomenon that influences both the psychology of identity and economics (Belk, 1988(Belk, , 2000. Across two experiments in Hartley, Fisher, and Fletcher (2020), TD children perceived items belonging to famous owners (e.g. Winnie the Pooh's honey jar) to be more valuable than similar items belonging to non-famous owners (e.g.…”

Treasure or Bargain? The Influence of Mortality Salience on Possession Valuation

“…Research on neuropsychology has found that establishing ownership activates a region in the brain that functions in explicit self-referential processing (Kim & Johnson, 2012). If we view ourselves favorably, we will transfer positive perceptions to possessions (Hartley, Fisher, & Fletcher, 2020;Gawronski et al, 2007). In short, though it is well established that selfesteem serves as a buffer against death anxiety and affects object evaluation, little is known about how people value their possessions when reminded of their inevitable death.…”