Inferring Thoughts by and of Individuals With and Without Autism: An Empathic Accuracy Study

While prevailing theories suggest social interaction difficulties are inherent to autism, the theory of the double empathy problem (DEP) proposes these difficulties arise from a mismatch between different neurotypes. The theory predicts more challenging communication between individuals with and without autism, but better communication among individuals with autism. While individuals with autism indeed report better communication, experimental studies testing the theory are largely lacking. In this study, 106 adults (55 with autism) completed an empathic accuracy task in which they watched video clips of an interaction between an individual with and without autism and inferred the individuals' thoughts. Contrary to our hypothesis, adults with autism were not better at estimating the thoughts of other adults with autism. Instead, they were generally less accurate than adults without autism. Individuals with autism were also perceived as more difficult to estimate. In conclusion, this study did not find support for the DEP theory. Further research is needed to understand the reported ease of communication among individuals with autism.Lay abstractAutism is associated with social interaction and communication difficulties. Whereas most previous theories have attributed these difficulties to an inherent deficit in individuals with autism, the theory of the double empathy problem (DEP) argues that they may be the result of a mismatch between people with different communication styles. Although the experiences of individuals with autism strongly support this theory, little is known about how accurate or efficient communication is between individuals with autism. In this study, a total of 106 adults, both with and without autism, watched videos featuring individuals with and without autism, who were filmed while they got to know each other. Afterwards, those filmed individuals rewatched their own videos and indicated the thoughts they had during the interactions. The accuracy was determined by comparing the inferred thoughts to the actual thoughts reported by the individuals in the videos. Contrary to expectations, individuals with autism were not more accurate at inferring the thoughts of other individuals with autism. Instead, individuals without autism were generally more accurate in estimating thoughts than individuals with autism. In addition, individuals with autism were experienced as more difficult to read. The results of this study did not provide evidence for the DEP theory. More research is needed to understand why individuals with autism experience better communication with others with autism.