Is it possible to be autistic, and score very highly on face-voice emotion reading tests?

[lisatomic]

Hi everyone! I am preparing for a meeting with a psychiatrist, where I would like to discuss a possible ASD diagnosis. I've suspected I am autistic for over a decade due to both childhood and current issues, and am currently experiencing higher-than-normal anxiety and depression, so am finally seeking help and self-understanding.

In preparation, I took 10 tests on Aspie tests to bring with me.

Here is what I am very curious about: I scored far into the ASD/Suspected ASD ranges on 7 of these tests. But on three (Reading the mind in films, and the Face-Voice Battery 1 and 2) I scored... really high-- well above the neurotypical range (I got 16/22, 84%, 94%, correct emotions respectively, where female NT is ~13/22, 78%, 72%). From these tests it looks like I'm actually really pretty good at understanding emotions from faces and voices (though this doesn't match with my experience of face to face conversation at all).

I'm wondering if anyone else has had similar experiences with these face-voice tests. Does this mean I am not autistic, and should look for other explanations (including for the rest of the 7 test scores)? I have a few thoughts on *how* I'm answering these face-voice questions that make me suspicious that this is a really "natural" process for me, but I'd really like to hear whether anyone else scores really highly on those, and yet is still either self- or professionally diagnosed. Thanks!

 

[Autistamatic]

In a word - Yes. There are a number of characteristics which define ASD and you have to display a number of them to receive a diagnosis, but few of us show ALL the characteristics. We don't all avoid eye contact, some of us are very empathic, some of us started talking before other children and more...
The fact that in one particular area you don't fit the mould does not mean you are not on the spectrum. When you add in masking learned over years and the study many of us have undertaken to compensate for our failings, it becomes very complicated. I, for example, have read countless books and texts on psychology, body language and other non-verbal communication. It's not instinctive and I have to consciously evaluate my observations rather than just "getting it", but I'm now much better at recognising signals I once missed, than I was when diagnosed over 30 years ago. If I were to be assessed now it would be less cut and dried than back then because of my experience and learning.
A good clinical psychologist or psychiatrist with a firm understanding of autism will take all this into account when assessing you. The fact that you are quite good at one thing that Aspies are often lacking in, shouldn't affect your diagnosis providing you meet enough of the other criteria

 

[Progster]

While those on the spectrum tend to get lower scores on these tests, some do get normal and even high scores, it's not so unusual. Your psychiatrist uses these tests to build up a profile of your abilities, and should make a diagnosis based on the profile as a whole. Recognising emotions in still photos is a lot different from recognising and picking up on facial expressions in a real life social situation - what really matters is how you feel about it in general, whether you feel that you have difficulty reading facial expressions in a social setting, and whether you feel that this impedes your communication or causes you difficulties. They aren't that reliable and limited in their usefulness and your psychiatrist might not even want to use such tests.

 

[Autistamatic]

Recognising emotions in still photos is a lot different from recognising and picking up on facial expressions in a real life social situation

I couldn't agree more. After all the study I've done over decades I'm quite good at the still picture exercises because I have that little bit extra time to think and make a conscious decision, but I don't have always that luxury when dealing with someone face to face who wants an immediate response. I've developed some delaying tactics that can help, but you can't keep doing them over and again in the same conversation, and even using them at all can sometimes make a tense situation worse.

 

[Monachopia]

As others have said, yes, it's absolutely possible. I can see you're a woman of around my age and you're looking to get a diagnosis; which is something I've only recently done. I usually score highly on facial expression, voice emotion tests too, but have been diagnosed with ASD. I studied people for a long time in my teens and took an interest to read up on body language at the time too, not for any particular reason, just felt compelled to. Though, I don't know how well I knew those things before the self-study.

Us aspie women seem to blend in a little bit more with the general crowd as we 'mimic' better (?), but there are still other things that set us apart. Usually social interactions are hard work and leave us drained. We're more logical rather than emotion based. We're happier by ourselves than with other people most of the time. There's a whole variety of factors on top of just reading emotion off other people to being an Aspie.

Good luck with your psychiatrist and diagnosis, it really isn't too scary. I hope you share your experiences with us here

 

[Pats]

Yes, and welcome to the forum.

 

[LunaAurum]

Recognising emotions in still photos is a lot different from recognising and picking up on facial expressions in a real life social situation

This is soooo true! Testing environments in general are rarely like actual life situation, for one you enter them with more anticipation of what is expected. This along with many stereotypes that still pervades even professionals regarding autism worries me in terms of how many people get missed simply because they didn't check 'correct' boxes on a list.

A huge factor into why I got diagnosed so late in life was that I always was very good and open with emotions and empathy. There is a widespread- and awful- belief that autistic people are emotionally stunted. I had realized this before seeking a professional to confirm my doubts and made efforts to find a specialist who was up to date and also used to females on the spectrum (who often present differently).

@uncertainAspie The quality of a diagnosis does depend a fair bit on the quality and care of the specialist involved. When you see the psychiatrist, pay attention to their approach and whether they are open to listening to your own concerns and having an open mind. If you end up feeling dismissed or unheard, you can find other therapists until you are comfortable. It's important to no be treated like a walking bag of symptoms. Good luck!!

 

[Judge]

IMO most autistic traits and behaviors are best defined in terms of real-time social interactions.

Where so many formal "tests" of autism simply can't measure up to in comparison.

 

[stringer]

I couldn't agree more. After all the study I've done over decades I'm quite good at the still picture exercises because I have that little bit extra time to think and make a conscious decision, but I don't have always that luxury when dealing with someone face to face who wants an immediate response. I've developed some delaying tactics that can help, but you can't keep doing them over and again in the same conversation, and even using them at all can sometimes make a tense situation worse.

And in those still-picture exercises, the situation is quite unrealistic, since one typically only has to select from just one of four possible options for the emotion of the person pictured, so a process of elimination can often be used to narrow down the choices. And furthermore, there is typically no time limit on how long one can take to reach a decision. I've always felt that those tests could easily be made significantly more realistic by offering the full list of possible emotional states that are covered in the entire test as options for each of the individual questions, and also having a time limit for making the choice. Then, I think, the differences between those with an innate ability to read emotions and those with impaired ability would really start to become clear.

 

[lisatomic]

As others have said, yes, it's absolutely possible. I can see you're a woman of around my age and you're looking to get a diagnosis; which is something I've only recently done. I usually score highly on facial expression, voice emotion tests too, but have been diagnosed with ASD. I studied people for a long time in my teens and took an interest to read up on body language at the time too, not for any particular reason, just felt compelled to. Though, I don't know how well I knew those things before the self-study.

Us aspie women seem to blend in a little bit more with the general crowd as we 'mimic' better (?), but there are still other things that set us apart. Usually social interactions are hard work and leave us drained. We're more logical rather than emotion based. We're happier by ourselves than with other people most of the time. There's a whole variety of factors on top of just reading emotion off other people to being an Aspie.

Good luck with your psychiatrist and diagnosis, it really isn't too scary. I hope you share your experiences with us here

Yes, I am not sure how well I knew these things before explicitly learning them either! Maybe ironically, my dissertation research focused on how people talk to one another face-to-face when learning science together-- and my current job involves analyzing a lot of such conversations on video. I've always been drawn to understanding how people understand each other.

 

[lisatomic]

And in those still-picture exercises, the situation is quite unrealistic, since one typically only has to select from just one of four possible options for the emotion of the person pictured, so a process of elimination can often be used to narrow down the choices. And furthermore, there is typically no time limit on how long one can take to reach a decision. I've always felt that those tests could easily be made significantly more realistic by offering the full list of possible emotional states that are covered in the entire test as options for each of the individual questions, and also having a time limit for making the choice. Then, I think, the differences between those with an innate ability to read emotions and those with impaired ability would really start to become clear.

Agreed-- for some of the test questions I covered the words so I couldn't see the choices before watching the video. My thought process watching was like: "ok that's a bad face... wait why did she just-- oh ok I think she doesn't like something". Then would look at the choices and see a couple "good" emotions, some other choice, and then something like "disgust" and go with that. If I had to generate the descriptions myself, I think I'd be much much worse at it...!

 

[Ezra]

It would just mean that neurological function is not impaired by autism. I have some funtions that are not impaired or only slightly impaired and others that are significantly or severely impaired.