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> Everyone feels uncomfortable when a conversation goes off-script, but we as a society expect the 'abnormal' people to be the ones who bear the consequences of

> Everyone feels uncomfortable when a conversation goes off-script, but we as a society expect the 'abnormal' people to be the ones who bear the consequences of that discomfort whenever it arises. This is talked about as the "double empathy" problem.

mcny 7y ago
This is the first I've heard of it so I searched Google: > About 4,280 results Clearly not talked about enough! For those who are curious, this website seems pretty legit HTML: https://network.autism.org.uk/knowledge/insight-opinion/double-empathy-problem https://network.autism.org.uk/knowledge/insight-opinion/doub... PDF: https://network.autism.org.uk/sites/default/files/ckfinder/files/The%20double%20empathy%20problem%20(PDF%20Ready).pdf https://network.autism.org.uk/sites/default/files/ckfinder/f... The author of the post quotes: “...right from the start, from the time someone came up with the word ‘autism’, the condition has been judged from the outside, by its appearances, and not from the inside according to how it is experienced.” (Donna Williams, 1996, p.14). I skimmed through it and this part seems like the gist: > Simply put, the theory of the double empathy problem suggests that when people with very different experiences of the world interact with one another, they will struggle to empathise with each other. This is likely to be exacerbated through differences in language use and comprehension. I first started to publish theoretical accounts of this issue in the early 2010s, yet similar ideas can be found in the work of Luke Beardon regarding ‘cross-neurological theory of mind’ and in that of the philosopher Ian Hacking. I imagine this doesn't need to be just about autism. I imagine this is useful when living abroad, for example.
- cr0sh 7y ago
  > I imagine this doesn't need to be just about autism. I imagine this is useful when living abroad, for example. Interesting. Other applications would be to such potential things like "meeting an advanced alien species" or "interactions with a future GAI", etc.
  - philipodonnell 7y ago
    Different experiences leading to an inability to communicate/empathize is universal, I think: > 326. “I can’t know what is going on in him” is, above all, a picture. It is the convincing expression of a conviction. It does not give the reasons for the conviction. They are not obvious. > 327. If a lion could talk, we wouldn’t be able to understand it." https://www.quora.com/What-did-Wittgenstein-mean-by-If-a-lion-could-speak-we-couldnt-understand-him https://www.quora.com/What-did-Wittgenstein-mean-by-If-a-lio...
anotherevan 7y ago
I found the following article quite good (the second half, more than the first half). It talks about the double empathy problem among other aspects. https://aeon.co/essays/the-autistic-view-of-the-world-is-not-the-neurotypical-cliche https://aeon.co/essays/the-autistic-view-of-the-world-is-not...

mcny 7y ago

This is the first I've heard of it so I searched Google: > About 4,280 results Clearly not talked about enough! For those who are curious, this website seems pretty legit HTML: https://network.autism.org.uk/knowledge/insight-opinion/double-empathy-problem https://network.autism.org.uk/knowledge/insight-opinion/doub... PDF: https://network.autism.org.uk/sites/default/files/ckfinder/files/The%20double%20empathy%20problem%20(PDF%20Ready).pdf https://network.autism.org.uk/sites/default/files/ckfinder/f... The author of the post quotes: “...right from the start, from the time someone came up with the word ‘autism’, the condition has been judged from the outside, by its appearances, and not from the inside according to how it is experienced.” (Donna Williams, 1996, p.14). I skimmed through it and this part seems like the gist: > Simply put, the theory of the double empathy problem suggests that when people with very different experiences of the world interact with one another, they will struggle to empathise with each other. This is likely to be exacerbated through differences in language use and comprehension. I first started to publish theoretical accounts of this issue in the early 2010s, yet similar ideas can be found in the work of Luke Beardon regarding ‘cross-neurological theory of mind’ and in that of the philosopher Ian Hacking. I imagine this doesn't need to be just about autism. I imagine this is useful when living abroad, for example.

cr0sh 7y ago
> I imagine this doesn't need to be just about autism. I imagine this is useful when living abroad, for example. Interesting. Other applications would be to such potential things like "meeting an advanced alien species" or "interactions with a future GAI", etc.
- philipodonnell 7y ago
  Different experiences leading to an inability to communicate/empathize is universal, I think: > 326. “I can’t know what is going on in him” is, above all, a picture. It is the convincing expression of a conviction. It does not give the reasons for the conviction. They are not obvious. > 327. If a lion could talk, we wouldn’t be able to understand it." https://www.quora.com/What-did-Wittgenstein-mean-by-If-a-lion-could-speak-we-couldnt-understand-him https://www.quora.com/What-did-Wittgenstein-mean-by-If-a-lio...

anotherevan 7y ago

I found the following article quite good (the second half, more than the first half). It talks about the double empathy problem among other aspects. https://aeon.co/essays/the-autistic-view-of-the-world-is-not-the-neurotypical-cliche https://aeon.co/essays/the-autistic-view-of-the-world-is-not...