Social Attention

Abstract

Abstract: Many TBI patients suffer from cognitive impairments, affecting their abilities to function on a previous level. However, some patients exhibit personality changes, manifesting themselves in inadequate or inappropriate social behavior, which are considered to have even more debilitating consequences on successful social and vocational rehabilitation. The term “impaired social attention” was put forward by Dr. van Zomeren as a description of a part of these problems: Patients' analysis of social situations seems incomplete, and they seem to lack awareness of consequences of their actions. In this paper the concept of social attention will be explored, whereby it is hypothesized that impaired social attention results from underlying emotional impairments. Two aspects of emotional behavior are considered essential prerequisites for intact social attention: The ability to perceive emotional expressions of others, and the ability to form a Theory of Mind (ToM). The literature will be reviewed in order to find out whether these aspects are impaired in TBI patients.