ABSTRACT
While most researchers agree that there are deficits of self-awareness in the Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), the degree to which such deficits exist remains debated. Children and adolescents were tested using a variant form of Gallup's (1970) self-recognition task in their own homes as opposed to a laboratory or school. Three groups were tested: Autism, ASD/NA (a group of other autism spectrum disorders excluding autism) and Non-ASD (a MR control group) using two types of mirrors (a standard mirror and a non-reversing mirror). In both mirror conditions, significantly fewer participants with autism demonstrated mirror recognition when compared to the Non-ASD group. Additionally, significantly fewer participants with ASD/NA passed during the regular mirror condition in comparison to the Non-ASD group. While these results support the theory that self-awareness deficits may exist in ASD, there is strong evidence of self-recognition in a notable amount of ASD participants as they passed in both mirror conditions. From these results, it can be speculated that some individuals with ASD may also possess rudimentary self-awareness and that testing environment may play a role in reported results.
