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Have you wondered where the claim that autistic people lack empathy came from?

The “jellyfish” study (2011) was influential in this, as it concluded that autistic people lacked Theory of Mind & capacity for moral reasoning.

medicalxpress.com/news/2011-01…

In the fictional scenario given to participants, Janet tells a friend it’s safe to swim with jellyfish. She believes they’re harmless. The friend is stung and dies.

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#Autism #Empathy #Neurodiversity #Psychology #TheoryofMind #ActuallyAutistic


Neuroscientists find evidence that autistic patients have trouble understanding others' intentions

(PhysOrg.com) -- A study from MIT neuroscientists reveals that high-functioning autistic adults appear to have trouble using theory of mind to make moral judgments in certain situations.
Anne Trafton (Medical Xpress)
#Psychology #actuallyautistic #autism #neurodiversity #theoryofmind #empathy

Thank you, Holden Thorp.
#science #health #autism

nytimes.com/2025/03/20/opinion…

#science #Health #autism

Eeek my book is in print! So beyond thrilled with how beautiful it looks. Asked for gold letters as it's a book by #Autistic people and Au is periodic symbol for gold.
#Books
#Autism
#ActuallyAutistic
@actuallyautistic
Photo of the Book Wired Our Own Way. The title is in embosses gold. Background a teal sort of green. Squiggley wires of different colours beneath title. Also says An Anthologu of Irish Autistic Voices
#books #autistic #actuallyautistic #autism @u/actuallyautistic

CW: Ableism

(2/2)

#actuallyautistic #autism #neurodivergence #comic #art #MastoArt

Dee is talking to a pink-haired girl named Bibi. Bibi is talking about something she loves, but Dee is struggling to relate. Bibi becomes visibly upset. The text reads: Things that are important to allistics can be confusing to us because we don't share the experience. Over time, this has become misunderstood as an absence of empathy. The next panel shows Dee standing on a street as she asks, “But hang on, what about empathy for autistic people? Let's not forget this is a two-way street!” In the foreground Bibi is glancing over her shoulder at Dee and gossiping with a boy. The text reads: Research shows that allistic people can really struggle to read autistic emotions and quickly form negative first impressions about us.
“Let me give an example,” Dee says. “I suffer from face blindness and recognise people by their hair. When somebody changes their hairstyle, it can be super upsetting for me. Imagine if your best friend showed up with a new face one day!” The panel shows Dee in a state of shock, loudly exclaiming “Eek!” as a person with no face waves at her. Dee says, “This is an experience a lot of people just can't relate to, making empathy tricky.” “It's just a haircut, why are you so upset?” Bibi asks, a judgmental look on her face. The final panel shows Dee looking at a text message exchange on her phone. Her friend wrote, “Hey, I got my hair cut. I can send you a photo. Are you ready?” To which Dee replies, “Yep, hit me!” The remaining text reads: But my friends have learned how distressing it is for me. My feelings are often quite different from allistic experiences, but the people who care about me recognise that and understand me.
Dee is speaking to the camera. She says, “Another thing that adds to the idea that autistics don't have empathy is our differences in communication style. We often express ourselves quite differently from allistics! Allistics can be confused by our tone and body language (or lack thereof), misinterpreting it as a lack of feeling or caring. I have a great example of differing communication styles. Did you know that one of the main ways autistics express empathy is by sharing similar experiences?” The next panel shows Dee trying to console Bibi. “...So I felt really sad,” Bibi is saying. Dee responds, “I know how you feel. This one time, I—“ Bibi sighs and rolls her eyes. She thinks to herself, “She's trying to steal my thunder!” The text explains: It doesn't mean we're trying to take the spotlight. We're sharing our experience to demonstrate our understanding on a deep, emotional level and to let you know you're not alone.
Dee looks visibly distressed. “I was actually pretty shocked when I learned many NTs don't like this! Oops!” she says. The remaining comic page then segues into a summary. The text reads: The different ways autistics and allistics communicate and process the world have led to the belief that autistics, as a rule, don't have empathy. It's simply not true! Sometimes we need allistics to explain to us why they feel a certain way about something—but it goes both ways. Hopefully allistics will extend us the same courtesy and listen to our feelings, too.
#art #mastoart #Comic #actuallyautistic #autism #neurodivergence

CW: Ableism

"Autistic people don't have empathy!"
"Do autistic people even have emotions?!'

...Sound familiar? Let's talk about one of the most prevalent and hurtful misconceptions surrounding autism... (1/2)

#actuallyautistic #autism #neurodivergence #comic #art #MastoArt

A girl with turquoise hair is talking to the camera. Her name is Dee. She says: “If you go online and start typing 'autism' into a search engine, one of the most asked questions about us is: Do autistic people have empathy? I'm here today to tell you that the answer is a very emphatic yes! There is still this common belief that autistics, as a general rule, do not have empathy. But this is an untrue and harmful stereotype, not least because people for some reason mistake lack of empathy for a lack of human emotion! I know. That's...a lot to digest.”
Dee looks thoughtful and says, “Let's start by discussing Alexithymia. Alexithymia is defined as an inability to identify, understand and communicate emotions, though many people mistake it for an inability to feel emotions. That's not true!” The comic panel shows a group of people smiling and reading the text beside them. It says: It is commonly associated with autism. But alexithymia can affect anyone, regardless of whether they're autistic or not. Just because someone is autistic, it doesn't mean they have alexithymia. And people with alexithymia still have feelings!
A girl with blonde hair is seen floating in a purple miasma of bad thoughts. Dee pulls her out of the miasma and comforts her as she says, “Let's ask an important question. Why do so many people assume that not having empathy makes somebody a bad person? Empathy is the ability to feel somebody else's feelings, but you can lack empathy and still have sympathy for others.” The final panel shows the blonde girl sitting and chatting happily with a group of people. The text beside them reads: You can love and support people even if their pain isn't pain you yourself experience or fully understand. You can still care. I think it's important to remember this and remove harmful stigma. Our humanity is not defined by whether or not we can experience empathy.
Dee is floating in space wearing an astronaut suit. Earth is a brilliant blue and green planet in the background. Dee says, “So where does this idea come from that autistics, as a rule, don't feel empathy? Well, we know that autistics and allistics process the world very differently.” The next panel shows Dee sitting on a pier by the sea. She is conversing with a mermaid with seaweed-green hair and pointy little teeth. Dee is talking about birds, which the mermaid seems to interpret as her talking about fish. The text beside them reads: Have you heard of the “double empathy” problem? It suggests that when two people with very different experiences try to interact, they struggle to empathise with each other. It can be difficult to understand where someone is coming from when their life is different from yours. Autistic people don't lack empathy, they just sometimes struggle to understand allistics.
#art #mastoart #Comic #actuallyautistic #autism #neurodivergence

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