Social Cognition Development and Socioaffective Dysfunction in Childhood and Adolescence

Abstract

AbstractSocial cognition refers to a wide range of cognitive abilities that allow individuals to understand themselves and others and also communicate in social interaction contexts (Adolphs, Curr Opin Neurobiol 11(2):231–239, 2001). According to Adolphs (Annu Rev Psychol 60(1):693–716, 2009), social cognition deals with psychological processes that allow us to make inferences about what is happening inside other people—their intentions, feelings, and thoughts. Although the term can be defined in many ways, it is clear that it must be safeguarded for the mental operations underlying social interactions. The most investigated cognitive processes of social cognition are emotion recognition and theory of mind (ToM), given that a whole range of socio-affective and interpersonal skills, such as empathy, derive from them (Mitchell RL, Phillips LH, Neuropsychologia, 70:1–10, 2015). Theory of mind is an intuitive ability to attribute thoughts and feelings to other people, and this ability usually matures in children in preschool age (Wellman HM, The child’s theory of mind. Bradford Books/MIT, 1990), whereas emotional recognition refers to an individual’s ability to identify others’ emotions and affective states, usually based on their facial or vocal expressions, it is a critical skill that develops early and supports the development of other social skills (Mitchell RL, Phillips LH, Neuropsychologia, 70:1–10, 2015).