An affective assessment: incarnate biases in picture captions for autistic children

Abstract:

Previous studies have explored cognitive disabilities experienced by autistic children between the ages of 2 and 5 who attend special schools. However, there is still debate regarding the onset, scope, and causes of these problems, particularly when considering incarnate biases that may arise from affective notions. Early affective issues could potentially be a key factor contributing to observing such biases in picture captions. In this study, we employed an affective approach—simultaneous observation and questionnaire—to investigate how incarnate biases impact picture caption activities. Specifically, we looked at the performances of autistic children across four grades: PreK, K1, K2, and K3. We found that autistic children across all grades demonstrated instances of incarnation-biased interpretations in picture captions, although K3 performed better than the other grades. Furthermore, their incarnate biases tended to be negative rather than positive in affection, depending on the level of activity involved. Ultimately, the sources of these incarnate biases may stem from three spheres: school, society, and family. Thus, it is essential to consider these factors when designing educational programs for children with autism. It highlights the potential dangers associated with negative biases in picture captions. Unlike previous studies that focused on identifying discrepancies in picture caption, our research suggests that over time, as we take into account the onset of incarnate biases from the three affective spheres discussed in this study, picture caption may improve among autistic children as their incarnate biases decrease.

Keywords:

• picture captions
• incarnate biases
• autistic children
• affective

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Data availability statement

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation. All research data can be open-shared free in Dataverse (https://dataverse.harvard.edu/dataset.xhtml?persistentId=doi%3A10.79.10/DVN/KLQVPC&version=DRAFT).

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

National Social Science Project of China (A Study on the Validity Verification Model of Digitally Empowered Foreign Language Writing Assessment, 23BYY162). Zhejiang Social Science Project (A Study on the Validity Verification Model of Digitally Empowered Foreign Language Writing Assessment, 2023). Major Humanities and Social Sciences Research Projects in Zhejiang Higher Education Institutions (2023QN041).