Mind Matters Blog: Autism, the Cingulate and Social Inter...

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Mind Matters Blog: Autism, the Cingulate and Social Interactions (Scientific American)

The Neural Substrate of Trust and Reputation Management

Chris and Uta Frith

University College London


When Leo Kanner first diagnosed a group of 11 children as autistic in 1943, he described the syndrome as one of "extreme aloneness." ("Aut" is greek for "self," and autism translates as "the state of being unto one's self.") The syndrome afflicts 1 in every 160 individuals, and it leaves them emotionally isolated, incapable of engaging in many of the social interactions that most of us take for granted. An autistic individual can be highly intelligent (as measured with IQ tests), but will still have profound difficulties dealing with other people.

We know that autism is a biological disorder with a strong genetic component and a basis in the brain. It's much harder, however, to figure out what happens in the brain during social interactions. After all, it's not easy to be social inside a brain scanner. You're stuck inside a small tube, unable to do anything but press a few buttons. Scientists have solved this problem by playing simple games in which two players interact while their brains are being scanned. Chiu et al. employed this technique in a recent study, which was the first to examine brain activity in autistic individuals while they were engaged in social interactions.

Just Trust Me
The subjects were playing a "trust" game involving money. At the start of each round, an "investor" receives a stake of $20. He or she can keep it all or "invest" some of it with a "trustee." Any money that gets invested is tripled, and the trustee then has the option of returning some portion of that amount back to the investor. For example, if the investor keeps $10 and invests $10, then the trustee has $30 to divide ($10 x 3). If the trustee decides to keep all the money, however, the investor cannot do anything about it.

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Mind over matters topic

MrMark, this inactivity in a certain part of the brain (cingulate cortex) makes sense. Autistics do not care whether there is an audience or not, and we cannot read other people as NTs do. We are not influenced by societal norms.

I am visualizing this part of the cortex does not light up or receive the same blood flow or neuronal firing. I am wondering if this would erroneously be considered pathological or is a manifestation of the genetic condition of AS, a natural aspect of our difference.

The curbies might jump on this as something that could be "corrected."



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