1. Critically evaluate the theory of mind model of autism and the weak central coherence model of autism.
You should use lectures 5 and 6 as a starting point for this essay. You should give an overview of the theory of mind model of autism and the weak central coherence model of autism in your introduction. In the main text you should include evidence for and against these cognitive theories of autism – you could think about whether the differences proposed by these models are universal in autism, if they are specific to autism, and how well they explain the different features and behaviours of autistic individuals. For the third point you could consider the two main diagnostic criteria of a difference in social communication / interactions and restricted / repetitive behaviours, interests, or activities. You could also think about features and behaviours relating to sensory, emotional, and/or face processing, which were covered in lectures 3 and 4. You may wish to think about features and behaviours that are explained well by the models, as well as aspects that are not well explained by the models. You should then be able to come to an overall conclusion about how well these models define the cognitive profile of autism.
Autism general essay guidance
You should write an essay to answer the question you have selected using empirical evidence from peer-reviewed journals. You should include critical evaluation of the evidence you include and/or relevant theories. You should aim to explore theories, concepts, and/or ideas in depth, and bring together different perspectives and information from different topics to answer the question.
To find relevant papers you might look at resource lists for the relevant lectures, references within relevant research papers, citations of relevant research papers, or using a relevant search engine such as Google Scholar, PsychINFO, PsychARTICLES, or Web of Science to find recent papers. If you can find a recent review paper on the topic of your essay this can also be helpful.
The essay preparation session contains useful information about writing essays.
Marking criteria
You can find the criteria that will be used when marking your essay on Moodle.
Introduction
Your introduction should be one paragraph, approximately 10% of the total essay length. You should define key terms and concepts in the introduction, including a definition of autism including the DSM-5-TR criteria. You should use the introduction to explain to the reader why the topic is important. It can be helpful to end the introduction with a brief overview of the points you will cover in the main body of your essay.
Main body
In the main body of your essay you should give one point per paragraph, and you should include empirical evidence to support your points. You should make sure to clearly explain the studies you include as evidence, and include critical evaluation of these where relevant. You might also use empirical evidence to critically evaluate the essay question. Critically evaluating papers and the essay question means considering the pros and cons of a study or theory, including considerations of limitations of studies or theories, to come to an overall conclusion. Critical evaluation is not just identifying limitations to a study or theories, instead this is considering the strengths and weaknesses of a study or theory to come to an overall conclusion about whether the study findings are reliable or whether the theory is overall supported. Where possible you should use references to support your claims. Your answer should be well structured, meaning you have a logical flow of points.
Conclusion
Your conclusion should be one paragraph, approximately 10% of the total essay length. You should provide a summary of your points, and come to an overall conclusion relating to the essay question. If relevant you may wish to include recommendations for future work or practice.
Further pointers
Your submission should be anonymous, so please make sure your name and student number do not appear anywhere in the document.
You must follow the APA structure for references and citations.
