Lack of motivation to share intentions: Primary deficit in autism?

We review evidence regarding Tomasello et al.'s proposal that individuals with autism understand intentions but fail socially because of a lack of motivation to share intentions. We argue that they are often motivated to understand others but fail because they lack the perceptual integration skills that are needed to apply their basically intact theory of mind skill in complex social situations.Centrum voor Leerpsychologie en experimentele psychopathologie. Afdeling Psychodiagnostiek en psychologische begeleiding. Onderzoeksgroep Psychodiagnostiek en psychopathologie. Onderzoeksgroep Psychotherapie en dieptepsychologie. Afdeling Psychiatrie. Afdeling Centrum Menselijke erfelijkheid - UZ. Afdeling Experimentele en kwantitatieve psychologie. Laboratorium voor Experimentele psychologie.status: publishe