Development of Moral Judgments in Impersonal and Personal Dilemmas in Autistic Spectrum Disorders from Childhood to Late Adolescence

• Published in: Journal of autism and developmental disorders Vol. 54; no. 2; pp. 691 - 703
• Main Authors: Labusch, Melanie, Perea, Manuel, Sahuquillo-Leal, Rosa, Bofill-Moscardó, Isabel, Carrasco-Tornero, Ángel, Cañada-Pérez, Antonio, García-Blanco, Ana
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.02.2024; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adolescent; Autism; Autism Spectrum Disorder; Behavioral Science and Psychology; Child; Child and School Psychology; Child development; Childhood; Children; Cognition & reasoning; Coping strategies; Decision Making; Emotions; Empathy; Humans; Hypotheses; Imbalance; Judgment; Medical research; Moral development; Moral dilemmas; Moral judgment; Morals; Neurosciences; Original Paper; Pediatrics; Psychology; Public Health; Social interaction; Social interactions; Social skills; Teenagers; Therapeutic targets; Autistic spectrum disorders; Empathy; Moral dilemma; Dual-process theory; Social cognition
• ISSN: 0162-3257; 1573-3432
• DOI: 10.1007/s10803-022-05795-6

A potential underlying mechanism associated with the difficulties in social interactions in Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) concerns the abnormal development of moral reasoning. The present study examined utilitarian and deontological judgments in impersonal and personal moral dilemmas, comparing 66 individuals with ASD and 61 typically developing (TD) individuals between 6 and 18 years. Utilitarian judgments decreased with age. This decline was much more gradual for personal dilemmas in the ASD than in the TD group. ASD individuals rated utilitarian judgments as more appropriate but felt less calm, consistent with the Empathy Imbalance hypothesis. Utilitarian judgments were associated with social interaction difficulties in ASD. These findings identify possible social therapeutic targets for more efficient coping strategies in individuals with ASD.