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Cited by 115Autism Spectrum Disorder ResearchChild and Animal Learning DevelopmentAction Observation and Synchronization

Dissociable aspects of imitation: A study in autism

Hobson, R. Peter, Hobson, Jessica A.·2008·Journal of Experimental Child Psychology
DOI 10.1016/j.jecp.2008.04.007
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Abstract

What does it mean for a child to imitate someone else? We tested matched groups of children with and without autism (n=16 for each group, with a mean chronological age of 11 years and a mean verbal mental age of 6 years) to investigate two potentially dissociable aspects of imitation: copying goal-directed actions, on the one hand, and imitating the "style" with which a person demonstrates those actions, on the other. Our hypothesis was that the latter, but not necessarily the former, kind of imitation reflects a special quality of interpersonal engagement in which one person identifies with another, and that the propensity to identify with others is specifically weak in autism. As predicted, participants with and without autism were similar in their ability to copy six relatively complex goal-directed actions but were significantly different in imitating the style with which six simpler goal-directed actions were executed, especially when style was incidental to accomplishing a goal. We interpret the findings in terms of a link among children's capacities for intersubjective engagement, imitation, and learning new ways to relate to objects.

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  • Children with autism tend not to copy the specific style with which a model performs an action.

    “Finally, children with autism, who may lack a strong social motivation to be like others, tend not to copy the specific style with which a model performs an action (Hobson & Hobson, 2008).”

    From The Psychology of Rituals: An Integrative Review and Process-Based Framework (2018) · cites this paper as Hobson & Hobson, 2008

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Authors
Hobson, R. P., & Hobson, J. A.
Affiliations
University College London (GB)
Corresponding author
Hobson, R. Peter
ORCID
Hobson, R. Peter
Venue
Journal of Experimental Child Psychology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2008-11
Volume
101
Issue
3
Pages
170-185
ISSN
0022-0965 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.jecp.2008.04.007
OpenAlex
W1982149234
Cited by
115
References
79
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 11 · 2012: 11
FWCI
2.42
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
Locations
  • Journal of Experimental Child Psychology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • Society for Research in Child Development
  • Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Child and Animal Learning Development
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Action Observation and Synchronization
Keywords
imitation, autism spectrum disorder, interpersonal engagement, identification, intersubjectivity, social cognition, children
MeSH terms
Attention, Autistic Disorder, Child, Concept Formation, Goals, Humans, Imitative Behavior, Interpersonal Relations, Learning Disabilities, Memory, Short-Term, Motivation, Psychomotor Performance, Retention, Psychology, Social Behavior, Social Identification

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