Understanding Social Cognition in Autism

Social cognition is a complex, multi-faceted construct that includes mechanisms for ways in which people perceive, interpret and respond to social information. Recognizing emotions, empathy, Theory of Mind (ToM), and social awareness, are all important components of social cognition. Social challenges are common in Autism, and have been an area of focus in research. In a recent comprehensive review, Sven Bölte explores this challenging topic, critically addressing the need to utilize a constructivist approach that accounts for factors beyond the individual. 

Nativist vs. Constructivist Approach

Bölte highlights that most research that has been conducted on social cognition has been conducted in lab- based setting and have focused primarily on the individual. He explains that this nativist approach focuses on cognitive and biological processes in the individual, with the assumption that social cognition is primarily innate and biologically driven. In contrast is the constructivist approach. Through this lens, we view social cognition not as something occurring within the individual alone, but rather as a construct influenced by the environment, social norms, social experiences, culture and relationships. 

Implicit vs Explicit Cognition

Social cognition processes can be either implicit or explicit. Implicit social cognition is automatic, rapid and unconscious, happening quickly in real time. This intuitive system develops in early life and is assumed to be connected to inborn and genetic traits. Explicit social cognition, on the other hand, is active, slow, and conscious, with a strong emphasis on being learned. The explicit systems generally develop later in life and are connected to other more advanced cognitive processes such as inhibition and working memory, and learned from social interactions. 

Theory of Mind

Before diving into the research, it is important to understand what Theory of Mind (ToM) is. ToM is the ability to understand that others have thoughts, feelings, beliefs and perspectives that are unique from your own. This allows an individual to realize that someone doesn't know what you know, and understand that others can have a false belief. A precursor to ToM in young children is joint attention, both initiating and responding to others.  

Autism and Social Cognition

Researchers observe that at age 4, neurotypical children are usually able to understand that someone else’s mental state is different from their own, while children with Autism may not be able to do this. Meta-analyses of social cognition have identified the following lower performance skills in children with Autism: facial emotion processing, mental state labeling, social perception and attribution, and social understanding. Neurobiological studies have found under-activation of the amygdala during social cognition tasks, as well as connections between local networks to be more hyper-connected, and border networks to have less connectivity.

Individuals with Autism have more difficulties with implicit social cognition processes than explicit ones. Interestingly, social motivation is generally correlated with social cognition in neurotypical children, but is not the case with children with Autism. Also important to note, higher IQ in individuals with Autism is correlated with social cognition performance. Studies have found that difficulties in social cognition are associated with features of Autism, namely, social communication, inattention and restrictive behaviors. 

Interventions for Individuals with Autism

Interventions aimed to support individuals with Autism with social cognition have focused on social skills training and stimulation, focusing on ToM and emotion recognition. It is important to note that some strategies may be effective in a low demand situation, but ineffective in high demand situations. A study looking at bullying victims found training reduced self-reported bullying experiences. An intervention that focused on imitation and synchronized dance correlated with improvements in emotion inference. Theater groups have also been shown to correlate with improvements in ToM and emotion recognition. Transcranial direct current stimulation of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex was associated with improvements in ToM. 

Future of Social Cognition Research

Bölte reminds us that the research to date has held a primarily nativist perspective. While current research has focused on the individual, their deficits, and biologically rooted challenges in social cognition, it is generally acknowledged that these challenges emerge from a greater social context. The following factors should be considered in future research. 

1. Stigma: Whether the knowledge of diagnosis impacts the tolerance and support that neurotypicals show toward their neurodivergent peers in social interactions.

2. How individuals with Autism are experienced.

3. Bidirectionality of social cognition and whether neurotypical individuals have difficulty understanding and reading individuals with Autism.

When supporting individuals with Autism it is important to acknowledge that the changes needed may not just be from the individuals themself, but may need to come from their environment and their supports. 

Reference:

Bölte, S. (2025). Social cognition in autism and ADHD. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 169, 106022.

Amanda Ross, Senior Behavior Specialist, Miren Behavior