Imagination in human social cognition, autism, and psychotic-affective conditions

Crespi, Bernard J.; Leach, Emma; Dinsdale, Natalie L.; Mökkönen, Mikael; Hurd, Peter L.

doi:10.1016/j.cognition.2016.02.001

Cited by 59 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 256 publications

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“…This ability is thought to be driven by a heightened ability to detect patterns, which help autistic people "fill in" missing information through a process of reintegration (Mottron, Dawson, & Soulières, 2009). This, paired with a keen attention to detail, is hypothesized to underlie the significant potential for creativity and depth of imagination often attributed to autism (Crespi, Leach, Dinsdale, Mokkonen, & Hurd, 2016;Mottron et al, 2009), despite early accounts suggesting that a relative lack of imagination is indicative of an ASD cognitive style (Wing & Gould, 1979).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What am I thinking? Perspective-taking from the perspective of adolescents with autism

Atherton

Lummis

Day

et al. 2018

Autism

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Autistic people are often described as being impaired with regards to theory of mind (ToM), though more recent literature finds flaws in the ToM deficit paradigm. Additionally, the predominant methods for examining ToM often rely on "observational" modes of assessment and do not adequately reflect the dynamic process of real-life perspective taking. Thus, it is imperative that researchers continue to test the autistic ToM deficit paradigm and explore ToM experiences through more naturalistic approaches. This study qualitatively examined ToM in twelve autistic adolescents through a series of semi-structured interviews. Interpretive phenomenological analysis of the data revealed four core themes in participants' ToM experiences and strategies, all of which highlighted how a more accurate representation of autistic ToM is one of difference rather than deficit. For instance, data showed that autistic heightened perceptual abilities may contribute to mentalizing strengths and that honesty in autism may be less dependent on systemizing rather than personal experience and choice. Such findings suggest that future research should reexamine autistic characteristics in light of their ability to enhance ToM processing. Understanding how an autistic ToM is uniquely functional is an imperative step towards both destigmatizing the condition and advocating for neurodiversity.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What am I thinking? Perspective-taking from the perspective of adolescents with autism

Atherton

Lummis

Day

et al. 2018

Autism

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“…65,66 Additionally, people who experience hallucinations 67 or are at high genetic risk for schizophrenia report greater ease of imagery generation and higher vividness of imagery generated in the laboratory. 68 However, other studies have either found no schizotypy-related differences in the vividness of imagery when assessed in the laboratory 63 or have only observed such effects for imagery of specific sensory modalities 64 or emotional tone. 63 In tasks in which pictures and written words are presented for encoding, followed by a surprise test of recognition memory, people who experience visual hallucinations were more likely to misremember verbally presented information as having been visually presented.…”

Section: Imagery Anomalies Associated With Schizotypymentioning

confidence: 99%

Mental imagery in psychiatry: conceptual & clinical implications

Kavanagh

Holmes

et al. 2019

CNS Spectr.

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Mental imagery refers to the experience of perception in the absence of external sensory input. Deficits in the ability to generate mental imagery or to distinguish it from actual sensory perception are linked to neurocognitive conditions such as dementia and schizophrenia, respectively. However, the importance of mental imagery to psychiatry extends beyond neurocognitive impairment. Mental imagery has a stronger link to emotion than verbal-linguistic cognition, serving to maintain and amplify emotional states, with downstream impacts on motivation and behavior. As a result, anomalies in the occurrence of emotion-laden mental imagery has transdiagnostic significance for emotion, motivation, and behavioral dysfunction across mental disorders. This review aims to demonstrate the conceptual and clinical significance of mental imagery in psychiatry through examples of mood and anxiety disorders, self-harm and suicidality, and addiction. We contend that focusing on mental imagery assessment in research and clinical practice can increase our understanding of the cognitive basis of psychopathology in mental disorders, with the potential to drive the development of algorithms to aid treatment decision-making and inform transdiagnostic treatment innovation.

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“…In recent years there has been a renewed interest in specific overlapping autistic and psychotic symptoms, in clinical and non-clinical samples, partially guiding the ongoing quest for differential markers and potential risk factors for psychosis in patients with ASD (Abu-Akel et al 2016, 2015; Barneveld et al 2011; Brosnan et al 2014; Chung et al 2014; Crespi et al 2016; Eack et al 2013; Sasson et al 2016). One overlapping symptom that has received relatively little attention is formal thought disorder (FTD).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Formal Thought Disorder and Executive Functioning in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Old Leads and New Avenues

Ziermans

Swaab

Stockmann

et al. 2017

J Autism Dev Disord

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Formal thought disorder (FTD) is a disruption in the flow of thought and a common feature in psychotic disorders and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Executive dysfunction has often been associated with FTD, yet for ASD convincing evidence is lacking. This study investigated FTD and three core executive functions in 50 young children and adolescents with high-functioning ASD and 56 matched controls. Higher overall levels of FTD marked ASD compared to controls. Furthermore, in ASD decreased performance on verbal working memory was correlated with increased FTD ratings and explained a significant amount of variance of objective and subjective FTD. Verbal working memory is currently the most promising target executive function for understanding the development of idiosyncratic thought disorders in ASD.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10803-017-3104-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Imagination in human social cognition, autism, and psychotic-affective conditions

Cited by 59 publications

References 256 publications

What am I thinking? Perspective-taking from the perspective of adolescents with autism

What am I thinking? Perspective-taking from the perspective of adolescents with autism

Mental imagery in psychiatry: conceptual & clinical implications

Formal Thought Disorder and Executive Functioning in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Old Leads and New Avenues

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