Josol Cynde Katherine, Fisher Marisa H, Cho Eunsoo
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, Davis MIND Institute, 2825 50th Street, Sacramento, CA, 95817, USA.
Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology, and Special Education, Michigan State University, East Lansing, USA.
J Autism Dev Disord. 2025 Aug 13. doi: 10.1007/s10803-025-07007-3.
For individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), the understanding and expression of empathy and its various components can be challenging. However, different etiologies can elucidate various strengths and weaknesses related to empathy. The present study examined the specific relationship of empathy and social skills for individuals with autism (AD), Williams syndrome (WS), Down syndrome (DS), and a non-disabled (ND) control group. The research questions for the current study were (a) Do caregiver ratings of empathy and social skills differ across individuals with AD, WS, DS, and ND?; and (b) Are there differences in the relationship between empathy skills and social skills within and across groups? The total sample (N = 120) included caregivers of 30 individuals diagnosed with AD (mean age = 10.73 years), 30 individuals diagnosed with WS (mean age = 12.07 years), 30 individuals with DS (mean age = 11.53 years), and 30 ND individuals (mean age = 10.90 years). Caregivers were asked to complete the children's version of the Empathy Quotient and the Social Responsiveness Scale (2nd Edition). According to caregiver reports, AD individuals present with lower empathy skills compared to WS, DS, and ND individuals. Differences between groups were also demonstrated regarding the relationship between empathy and social skills. More specifically, for WS individuals, lower empathy skills were not significantly correlated with social motivation. The results highlight that differences in empathy and social skills should be accounted for in empathy-related interventions and underscores the importance of developing etiology-specific interventions.
对于患有智力和发育障碍（IDD）的个体而言，理解和表达同理心及其各个组成部分可能具有挑战性。然而，不同的病因可以阐明与同理心相关的各种优势和劣势。本研究考察了自闭症（AD）、威廉姆斯综合征（WS）、唐氏综合征（DS）个体以及非残疾（ND）对照组个体的同理心与社交技能之间的具体关系。本研究的研究问题是：（a）AD、WS、DS和ND个体的照顾者对同理心和社交技能的评分是否存在差异？以及（b）组内和组间同理心技能与社交技能之间的关系是否存在差异？总样本（N = 120）包括30名被诊断为AD的个体（平均年龄 = 10.73岁）、30名被诊断为WS的个体（平均年龄 = 12.07岁）、30名患有DS的个体（平均年龄 = 11.53岁）以及30名ND个体（平均年龄 = 10.90岁）的照顾者。要求照顾者完成儿童版的《同理心商数》和《社会反应量表》（第2版）。根据照顾者的报告，与WS、DS和ND个体相比，AD个体的同理心技能较低。在同理心与社交技能之间的关系方面，各组之间也存在差异。更具体地说，对于WS个体，较低的同理心技能与社交动机没有显著相关性。结果强调，在与同理心相关的干预措施中应考虑到同理心和社交技能的差异，并强调制定针对病因的干预措施的重要性。
