The Blurred Vital Contours of Intersubjectivity in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Early Signs and Neurophysiological Hypotheses

In this review, we discuss the topic of intersubjectivity and its disruption in Autism Spectrum Disorder, both from a developmental and neuroscientific perspective. We present evidence of the impact of an early neurodevelopmental disorder on the blooming of intersubjective abilities. We propose the existence of a basic, pre-reflective social cognition that originates from the sensorimotor networks and is anchored to their teleological organization. We present neurophysiological evidence of its involvement in the direct understanding of three core elements of action: its category, its goal, and its dynamic contour. Finally, we discuss to which extent the disrupted development of brain neuroarchitecture and connectivity in Autism could also possibly impact on basic social cognition, thus preventing fluid, preverbal alignment with the others.