As and the interbrain

Asperger syndrome and the interbrain
Digby Tantam
Clinical Professor of Psychotherapy, University of Sheffield

Quantum entanglementBoyer V, Marino AM, Pooser RC, Lett PD. Entangled Images from Four-Wave Mixing. Science. 2008 July 25, 2008;321(5888):544-7.

Invisible connections

Separated sediment layers of marine bacteria communicate electronicallyNealson KH. Geomicrobiology: Sediment reactions defy dogma. Nature. [10.1038/4631033a]. 2010;463(7284):1033-4.

Seagulls fall asleep and wake together in the Bay of FundyBeauchamp et al. Sleeping gulls monitor the vigilance behaviour of their neighbours. Biology Letters, 2009; 5 (1): 9 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2008.0490

An idea whose time has come?

Slime mould Physarumpolycephalum metamorphosing from unicellular amoeba to multi-celled sporangiophorein response to starvation

Hunyuan hanging temple, Mt. Hengshan, Shanxi

Which is the organism?

Ian Couzin (icouzin.princeton.edu)
Short-range repulsive behaviour
Intermediate range desire to align with neighbours
and a long-range attraction to the group as a whole
NT
ASD
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Neurons are linked by electrical impulses and chemicals into a network
Our brains can be linked to other brains the way that one computer can be linked to another via the internet
These links are the nonverbal communications that pass between us, principally consisting of imitation and of gaze following
Imitation and gaze following are automatically initiated by local brain networks apparently specialized for this

SchurmannM, Hesse MD, Stephan KE, Saarela M, Zilles K, Hari R, et al. Yearning to yawn: the neural basis of contagious yawning. Neuroimage. [doi: DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2004.10.022]. 2005;24(4):1260-4.

The interbrain
Extended cognition
Automatic processing
Reflexive vs. reflective processing
‘The borg’
Jerry Ryan, 7 of 9 StarTrek
Neurotypical
Aspie
Brookdale care conference, London

On sale here

Themes in adulthood Ryan, S,Räisänen, U "It's like you are just a spectator in this thing": Experiencing social life the [`]aspie' way. Emotion, Space and Society 2008; 1: 135-43.
feeling different
trying to fit in
safe spaces
uncommon sense

Feeling different
Being disconnected from the interbrain

Contributors
Aston Bullying Project
Paul Naylor
Jeremy Dawson
Eric Emerson
Laura Vazquez
Sheffield survey
Myles Balfe
Ting Chen
Mike Campbell
Sheffield Bullying project
Paul Naylor
Jenny Wainscot
Jenna Williams
15 medical students
Parents, teachers, and people with Asperger syndrome
Sheffield Asperger Parents Action Group

Project Development
23

Green et al compared 20 adolescent men with AS with 20 with conduct problems
AS group
Severely impaired practical social functioning
Anxiety
Obsessionaldisorders
Both groups had
Depression
Suicidal ideation
Tempers and defiance

Outstanding areas for concern: Sheffield survey
Reduction of available support in adulthood
Lack of paid work (36%, 6% of whom supported)
Lack of independence
60% living with parents
21% living independently
56% thought they could be more independent with support

Emotional problems in adolescents and adults with Asperger syndrome(findings from Sheffield survey)
Self-harm: thoughts 50%, actual 11%
Violence: threats 83%, actual 34%
Bullied 90%, 30% currently (includes adults)
Majority have anxiety-related disorder

‘There is a view of life which conceives that where the crowd is, there is also the truth, and that in truth itself there is need of having the crowd on its side. There is another view of life which conceives that wherever there is a crowd there is untruth, so that (to consider for a moment the extreme case), even if every individual, each for himself in private, were to be in possession of the truth, yet in case they were all to get together in a crowd - a crowd to which any decisive significance is attributed, a voting, noisy, audible crowd - untruth would at once be in evidence’ (Kierkegaard, 1846; Dedication).
The viewpoint of mind
2/28/11
Modum Bad
27

24 November 2009
“l’hommeestnélibre, et partoutilestdans les fers. J.-J. Rousseau

Is it better not to be so connected to the interbrain?
Fewer informational viruses
Understand machines in their own right not as defective people
Fairness is not prejudiced by sympathy
Not in chains

Trying to fit in
Many other educational obstacles, plus emotional difficulties

Atypical Asperger syndrome
Associated developmental disordersPredominantly fronto-striatal or fronto-cerebellar
Dysexecutive syndrome (planning)
Dyslexia (writing and spelling)
Attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (impulsivity, executive functions, task persistence)
Also links with
Tourette syndrome
Expressive speech and language disorder (may lead to elective mutism)
Dysgraphia
Dyscalculia
Topographical disorientation

Atypical Asperger syndrome
Primary abnormality is lack of empathy, partly due to failure of non-verbal interpretation (‘face blindness’)
Ability to make relationships but not to keep them
Lack of empathy may lead to antisocial behaviour, but greater problem is lack of persuasiveness and ‘social influencing power’
Picture on left from Pelphrey et al, 2002 and on right from the film, “Ripley’s game” starring Matt Damon as Ripley
24 November 2009

Knowing about the world using non-verbal cues
Who is being shot?
Terrorists or partisans?

Why is that woman so fat?
34

Coping with a lack of identity
Fads
‘Obsessive’ relationships
Lack of identity in many people with ASD
Adopting identity wholesale
Joining charismatic groups
Moving places and work
Searching for identity
‘Transexualism’
‘Aspie’
Identities off the peg
Gangster
Professor
Teddy bear
21 Mar 08
Advances in research and management of AS

Atypical AS
‘Look normal’, because normal NVE. Do not seem like ‘Aspies’
Form friendships but they do not last
May have many hidden learning difficulties e.g. lack of speech understanding, reduced working memory
Vulnerable adults
Lack of empathy leads to a lack of persuasiveness
This may lead to unassertiveness or exploitation
Coercive interpersonal strategies, possibly more likely if associated ADHD
Drug misuse, violence, other forensic issues
Impulsivity may alternate with compulsivity
May seek an identity as adults, and like special interests in other people with AS, may embrace or drop one ruthlessly.
Modelling on others may be even more marked

Telling the truth vs. knowing the truth
Narrative
38

Implications for witness statements
People with AS do see the trees for the wood
And may reliably apply a correspondence theory of truth
But they may not have a narrative theory
Bruck, M., K. London, et al. (2007). "Autobiographical memory and suggestibility in children with autism spectrum disorder." Dev.Psychopathol.19(1): 73-95; AS McCrory, E., L. A. Henry, et al. (2007). "Eye-witness memory and suggestibility in children with Asperger syndrome. [Article]." Journal of Child Psychology & Psychiatry48(5): 482-489..
As witnesses they may correctly memorize and reports facts
may not report the story of what happened, including the intentions of or provocations to the the actors
This may limit the value of their evidence
It may also go against them when they witness to their own defence
When people with AS report intentions, one should consider external influence
Questions should focus on facts and not interpretation
www.existentialacademy.com
39

Group Independence (or its lack among medical students)
40

Other contributors to inconsequentiality
Lack of emotional empathy
Neurotypicals are united, and do not deserve empathy
Uproar
Can any of these factors increase lying?
Lack of a shared social contract
Lack of social influencing power
41

Safe spaces
Bullying and exclusion at and from school begin a process of narrowing the number of safe spaces

Consequences of bullying
Passive failure to be included
Reduced use of community resources (social exclusion)
Experience of being unwanted/marginalized
Active rejection , blaming, scapegoating
Stigma as a means of keeping threatening Other at a distance
Bullying
Painted Bird by Edward Gafford, inspired by the novel ‘Painted Bird’ by JerzyKosiński, itself based on what has been claimed is a fictive war-time experience of the author in Poland

Who bullies and why? Evidence is limited, but
On behalf of a social group
Bullies are highly regarded, but not popular
Bullies’ in-group status may be tenuous
Victims are different
Victims may be more aggressive than non-victims, and are perceived, perhaps as more threatening

A particularly wide ranging tool kit
Readiness to consider the most intense emotional issues and in the next moment, the most practical and cognitive ones
Having a clear grasp of the individual in front of you, not just in life experience, or temperament, but in cognitive abilities
Be aware of shame and shaming
The limitless potential of social control by shaming

Does social exclusion lead to functional movement impairment
Is there a difference in the amount of physical activity of pupils with AS compared to others?
Mean number of steps per hour: AS group = 902, control group = 1312 (t = -2.645, p = .027)

24 November 2009

Where were people with AS in Sheffield?
Most living at home, even above 30.
Most had difficulties coping with changes in everyday environments
Difficulties moving between places (for example using public transport)
Most common places frequented were libraries and cinemas

Uncommon sense
Is the person with AS king of the cyber world?

Leaders pay attention to the environment
Followers (‘social individuals’) pay attention to the group, and so join the group following a leader
There are proportionately fewer leaders in larger migratory groups
icouzin@princeton.edu

Is Asperger syndrome the future?
Owen Thor Walker apointed to TelstraClear, who previously wrote code enabling a hacker group to steal £13.9M from bank accounts
Bram Cohen, founder BitTorrent, and self diagnosed Aspie

THE END—thanks for listening
Don’t forget slides can be found at www.dilemmaconsultancy.org

As and the interbrain

by Dilemma consultancy on Mar 02, 2011

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As and the interbrain — Presentation Transcript