Understanding and Evaluating Autism Theory by Nick Chown

Author:Nick Chown
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781784503062
Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Published: 2016-10-05T16:00:00+00:00

The hyper-systemizing, assortative mating theory

A further offshoot from Baron-Cohen’s empathizing–systemizing approach to understanding autism is his hyper-systemizing, assortative mating theory. This newer theory extends the extreme male brain theory of autism, proposing that autism may be the ‘genetic result of assortative mating of two high systemizers’ (Baron-Cohen 2006, p.865). Put another way, the new theory contends that autism has remained part of the human gene pool because high systemizers tend to be attracted to other high systemizers, that is, it attempts to explain why autism has not disappeared from the gene pool over time. In this theory Baron-Cohen draws a distinction between highly regulated systems (such as mathematics) and systems that are not governed by rules and are, therefore, subject to a lot of variation (such as the social world). The theory introduces a set of proposed mechanisms in the human brain necessary for an individual to be able to empathize: the intentionality detector (supposedly detects when action is intended by someone); eye direction detector (to detect whether someone is looking at you or at someone or something else); shared attention mechanism (to detect whether you and another person are attending to the same thing); theory of mind mechanism (to enable understanding of mental states and relationships between them); emotion detector (to enable understanding of emotions); and an empathizing system which enables an empathic reaction to another person’s emotional state.

Baron-Cohen (2006) says there is evidence of four levels of systemizing in the general population: Level 1 people have little or no interest in systemizing. They are said to be able to socialize and cope with change very easily; Level 2 individuals show typical female interests; Level 3 people show typical male interests; and at Level 4 individuals systemize more than average and may have autistic traits. The theory states that people with autism systemize at Levels 5–8. Level 5 is associated with Asperger syndrome, Level 6 with high-functioning autism, Level 7 with medium-functioning autism and Level 8 with low-functioning autism.6

By proposing that systemizing is linked with functioning level (remember that this means intellectual functioning), Baron-Cohen implies that an individual becomes more ‘autistic’ the lower down they appear on the intellectual functioning scale. Presumably that is what he thinks. I don’t. This perspective on autism is likely to be the one that causes some scholars to regard Asperger syndrome as mild autism, which I don’t agree with either. But reverting to the topic in hand, how does Baron-Cohen explain that a low-functioning person with autism is apparently a ‘better’ systemizer than a high-functioning person with autism? Also, if one accepts that there is a diagnostic difference between Asperger syndrome and high-functioning autism (and not all clinicians do accept this), why would it translate into a difference in systemizing ability, given that the diagnostic differences between them are based primarily on developmental delay in the area of language?

The hyper-systemizing, assortative mating theory is based on evidence that individuals with autism working in fields that require high systemizing skills (such as engineering, mathematics

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