Abstract
Mental imagery vividness varies between individuals. Low levels of mental imagery have been associated with high levels of autistic traits, whilst autistic traits are known to positively correlate with sensory sensitivities. This would predict a negative correlation between sensory sensitivity and imagery. However, one recent study has suggested that mental imagery vividness may be positively associated with sensory sensitivities, possibly through the shared mechanism of hyperexcitability of the sensory cortices. The aim of this paper was to explore this contradictory set of associations across two modalities (visual and tactile). We used standardised questionnaires to measure autistic traits, sensory sensitivities, and mental imagery vividness in a sample evenly comprised of autistic and non-autistic adults ( n = 595). Higher autistic traits were significantly associated with lower mental imagery ( r = − 0.20 and r = − 0.17 for visual and tactile imagery respectively), and a higher incidence of aphantasia was observed in the autistic group compared to the non-autistic group. In addition, higher autistic traits were significantly associated with increased sensory sensitivities ( r = 0.76). Importantly, we found negligible evidence of an association between mental imagery and sensory sensitivity, even when controlling for autistic traits. In the first study to directly explore autistic traits, sensory sensitivities and mental imagery, we conclude that there is no clear evidence to suggest that mental imagery and sensory sensitivity are related, challenging the idea of shared mechanisms of hyperexcitability of sensory cortex.
What This Study Is About
Researchers wanted to know if there is a link between mental imagery—the ability to picture things in your mind like a movie screen—and how sensitive a person is to the world around them (like loud noises or itchy fabrics). They specifically wanted to see how this works for people with and without autism.
How They Studied It
The team gathered 595 adults, about half of whom were autistic. Since you can’t look inside someone’s head to see their imagination, participants took detailed surveys. They rated how vividly they could "see" a sunset or "feel" the touch of a grain of sand in their minds. They also answered questions about their sensory deal-breakers (like bright lights) and their autistic traits.
What They Found
The study uncovered three major things:
1. The Autism Connection: People with more autistic traits were more likely to have aphantasia—a "blind mind’s eye" where the mental screen stays dark.
2. Sensitivity vs. Imagination: While it’s well-known that autistic people are often more sensitive to sights and sounds, the researchers found that this sensitivity isn't actually tied to how vivid their imagination is.
3. Separate Systems: Even though some scientists thought a "hyperexcitable" brain might cause both vivid imagery and high sensitivity, this study suggests they are actually two separate things.
What This Might Mean
This suggests that aphantasia and sensory sensitivity are like two different apps running on a phone—they might both be present, but one doesn't necessarily cause the other. This is important for therapy; for example, some treatments for anxiety rely on picturing a "happy place." If we know autistic people are more likely to have aphantasia, doctors can pick better tools that don't rely on mental pictures.
However, because this study relied on people describing their own experiences (self-reporting), we have to be careful. It’s hard to know if two people mean the same thing when they say an image is "vivid."
One Interesting Detail
The researchers found that autistic participants were significantly more likely to fall into the aphantasic category compared to the non-autistic group, suggesting the "blind mind's eye" is much more common in the autistic community than we previously realized!