Autism, Mirror Neurons, and Being-in-the-World:
An Approach from Neurophysiology to Neurophenomenology
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.30854/anf.v32.n58.2025.1104Keywords:
neurophysiology, mirror neurons, autism, diversity, inclusionAbstract
Autism has been conceptualized as a neurodevelopmental disorder and as a different form of human cognition. From a neurophysiological perspective, the mirror neuron system (MNS) in autism has been investigated, focusing on measurable data. Neurophenomenology proposes to integrate scientific evidence with subjective experience. Objective: to understand the relationship between subjectivity and the brain, covering the neural processes involved in autism and the first-person experience of a group of children and adolescents from the city of Manizales. Methodology: mixed research, descriptive and inferential, including qualitative information, approached from an interpretive phenomenological approach. 35 children between 6 and 16 years old and 19 control peers participated. Results: autistic participants demonstrated greater heterogeneity in the behavior of the MNS and in their relationship with the world, both with respect to control participants and among themselves. A proposal
for inclusive education called “Neurodiversity” was built, which won second place in the Premio Cívico Retos con los ODS. Conclusions: the importance of integrating neurophysiological evidence with first-person experience was demonstrated, allowing a broad understanding of the object of study and its applications in context.
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