Scientists have produced evidence that self-awareness is a big problem for people with autism.

Sophisticated scans showed the brains of people with autism are less active when engaged in self-reflective thought.

The findings provide a neurological insight into why people with autism tend to struggle in social situations.

The study, by the University of Cambridge, appears in the journal Brain.

Navigating social interactions with others requires keeping track of the relationship between oneself and others

Michael Lombardo

University of Cambridge

Autism has long been considered a condition of extreme egocentrism.

But research has shown the problem is people with the condition have trouble thinking about, and making sense of, themselves.

The researchers used functional magnetic resonance scans to measure brain activity in 66 male volunteers, half of whom had been diagnosed with an autistic spectrum disorder.

The volunteers were asked to make judgements either about their own thoughts, opinions, preferences, or physical characteristics, or about someone else's, in this case the Queen.

By scanning the volunteers' brains as they responded to these questions, the researchers were able to visualise differences in brain activity between those with and without autism.

They were particularly interested in part of the brain called the ventromedial pre-frontal cortex （vMPFC） - known to be active when people think about themselves.

The researchers found this area of the brain was more active when typical volunteers were asked questions about themselves compared with when they were thinking about the Queen.

However, in autism this brain region responded equally, irrespective of whether they were thinking about themselves or the Queen.

Researcher Michael Lombardo said the study showed that the autistic brain struggled to to process information about the self.

He said: "Navigating social interactions with others requires keeping track of the relationship between oneself and others.

"In some social situations it is important to notice that 'I am similar to you', while in other situations it might be important to notice that 'I am different to you'.

"The atypical way the autistic brain treats self-relevant information as equivalent to information about others could derail a child's social development, particularly in understanding how they relate to the social world around them."

Dr. Gina Gómez de la Cuesta, of the National Autistic Society, described the study as "interesting".

"We know many people with autism do want to interact with others and make friends but have difficulty recognising or understanding other people's thoughts and feelings.

"This research has shown that people with autism may also have difficulty understanding their own thoughts and feelings and the brain mechanisms underlying this."

科学家有证据显示，通常患有孤僻症的人，都在自我认识上有严重的问题。

人类大脑复杂的问题，显示那些患有孤僻症的人，在忙碌的时候大脑的活动很少。

这项发现为我们解释了为什么患有孤僻症的人，在社会工作情况下都那么努力。

这项研究是由剑桥大学开发的，被登载在Brain杂志上。

孤僻症一直是被社会所关注的一种极端的唯我主义。

但是研究却显示，此类的问题是个人的，个人在社会中遇到问题所想所感知而引起的。

研究者使用磁共振对脑电波进行细微的检查，有66位男性自愿者参加，研究显示其中近一半的人，都被诊断出有孤僻症倾向。

自愿者们被进行细微的盘问，包括他们的思想，观点，行为，或者是身体特征。

经过如此的对自愿者大脑的检查，反映出一个问题-那些比较容易反映大脑活动的人，更不容易患上孤僻症。

他们对大脑的活动格外的有兴趣。被称为VMPFC,也就是人们所知道的当人们，想他们自己的时候。

然而，人类大脑的思维是平衡的，不管他们在想自己还是在想女王。

科学家Michael Lombardo说，这项研究显示了，孤僻症的大脑，会努力的为自己收集信息。

他说："科学的航行是为了跟踪他人的需求，保持，你我的友好关系。"

"在很多社会群体中，显示出，我跟你是相似的，这一点很重要，而在另一种情况下，显示出，我与你的不同，又很重要。"

Gina 医生，形容此响研究非常，有趣。

我们知道很多人都患有孤僻症，他们交友很困难，或者不能明白别人的想和感受。"

"此项研究可以通过机器显示那些患有孤僻症的人，他们的思维和感受。"