Work on the "double empathy problem" (DEP) is rapidly growing in academic and applied settings (e.g., clinical practice). It is most popular in research on conditions, like autism, which are characterized by social cognitive difficulties. Drawing from this literature, we propose that, while research on the DEP has the potential to improve understanding of both typical and atypical social processes, it represents a striking example of a weak derivation chain in psychological science. The DEP is poorly conceptualized, and we find that it is being conflated with many other constructs (i.e., reflecting the "jingle-jangle" fallacy). We provide examples to show how this underlies serious problems with translating theoretical claims into empirical predictions and evidence. To start tackling these problems, we propose that DEP research needs reconsideration, particularly through a better synthesis with the cognitive neuroscience literature on social interaction. Overall, we argue for a strengthening of the derivation chain pertaining to the DEP, toward more robust research on (a)typical social cognition. Until then, we caution against the translation of DEP research into applied settings. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

中文翻译：

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双重同理心问题：推导链分析和警告。


关于“双重同理心问题”（DEP）的研究在学术和应用环境（例如临床实践）中正在迅速发展。它在对自闭症等以社会认知困难为特征的疾病的研究中最受欢迎。根据这些文献，我们提出，虽然对 DEP 的研究有可能提高对典型和非典型社会过程的理解，但它代表了心理科学中弱推导链的一个引人注目的例子。 DEP 的概念化很差，我们发现它与许多其他结构混为一谈（即反映了“叮叮当当”谬误）。我们提供了一些例子来说明这是如何将理论主张转化为经验预测和证据的严重问题的根源。为了开始解决这些问题，我们建议 DEP 研究需要重新考虑，特别是通过更好地综合有关社会互动的认知神经科学文献。总的来说，我们主张加强与 DEP 相关的衍生链，以对（a）典型的社会认知进行更强有力的研究。在此之前，我们警告不要将 DEP 研究转化为应用环境。 （PsycInfo 数据库记录 (c) 2024 APA，保留所有权利）。