Autism and empathy: Why the brain feels – only differently
An autistic child stands motionless while a classmate cries. No hugs, no comforting words, no visible sympathy. For many people, this seems to be confirmation: Autistic people lack empathy. But neuroscience paints a completely different picture.
Not too little – too much
Brain researcher Henry Markram came to a realisation through his autistic son Kai: Autistic people do not feel too little, but rather “too” much. His “Intense World Theory” shows that the autistic brain reacts faster and more intensely to emotional stimuli than neurotypical brains. What looks like indifference from the outside is actually emotional overstimulation.
A child who withdraws when a classmate is crying: It may feel the other person’s pain so intensely that its nervous system switches to emergency braking. The body reacts and the consciousness shuts down in order to cope with the flood of emotions. Outwardly, this appears distant, but internally it is usually a combination of many feelings at the same time.
Current research distinguishes between at least four types of empathy. Cognitive empathy – autistic people can actually find it difficult to mentally understand other people’s perspectives. Affective and somatic empathy, on the other hand, i.e. physical empathy, is often above average. It just manifests itself differently than expected.
What this means for everyday school life
If an autistic child flees the room in group conflicts, they do not need empathy training, but rather opportunities to retreat and an understanding that the intense perception of other people’s emotions can lead to overload. School support staff can learn to recognise early signs of overload – before the child “blocks out”.
The brain researcher Markram puts it this way: “We say that autistic people lack empathy. No. We lack it. For the autistic people.”
Dive deeper with JuCare
You can find information about professional autism therapy on the JuCare website: www.ju-care.com/autismustherapie
The JuCare newsletter regularly delivers in-depth insights straight to your inbox: www.ju-care.com/newsletter
Follow JuCare on Instagram for everyday topics, perspectives and community around autism: www.instagram.com/jucare_autism
Sources
Groß, M. (2020). Autism: Markram’s Intense World Theory. Spectrum of Science
