Autism poses many internal challenges, from increased sensory overwhelm and cognitive inflexibility to navigating co-occurring conditions like depression and anxiety. In addition, Autistic persons may use different internal working models to transact with other agents in the world. These population differences may result in empathy gaps. How do scientists minimize the resulting psychological distress associated with these challenges and empathy gaps? A psychoeducational program for global cognition was developed that attempts to integrate psychological research to design a prosthetic internal working model. The result is EM-Theory (Elemental Model), a 4x4 (sixteen elemental module) psychoeducational matrix called the Skew Metric. EM-Theory may evoke increased psychoeducational insight into the mechanics of cognitive architecture in a manner that is always accessible because it is optimized for limited capacity visuospatial working memory. It is hypothesized that an increased understanding of cognitive mechanics may increase capacities to self-regulate psychological distress. Emphasis was placed on four reportable elemental modules as a significant cause of psychological distress. A small conceptual study was conducted with 10 participants with autism spectrum differences (ASD) and ten participants from the typically developing population (TD). Measures were taken to capture attributes of psychological distress from four reportable elemental modules (worry, rumination, distraction from mindfulness, and loss of mental vigilance), as well as measures designed to capture each ASD participant’s relationship with internalized narratives implicating their autism. General conclusions were not drawn from this small sample study. However, individual differences were described as a proof of concept on how a quantitative test may be further developed to provide accurate and meaningful feedback to assist beyond introspection. / Graduate

Text in Afrikaans / Die verhaal wat hier vertel word is die van 'n jongeling wat sy ouerhuis verlaat om vir homself te sorg. Dit is die verhaal van die postmodernistiese wetenskaplike wat na 'n tydperk van modernistiese adolessensie moet afstand doen van die geborgenheid van sy kosmiese bestaan om 'n volwasse selfaangewesenheid nate streef. Maar wanneer hy homself (be)vind as die ek wat elke psigo-fisiese en rasioneel-empiriese werklikheid voorafgaan, is dit net om te ontdek dat hierdie ek nog ervaring nog wese is, dat hy hier niks anders (is) nie as 'n verwantskap van hierdie lewe met die dood. Om iets hiervan te begryp moet hy homself as 'n Lacaanse fallus aanskou. Hy is die beeld van die lewensvloed wat sy rol slegs in versluiering kan speel. Sy konstruksie verg altyd alreeds sy destruksie. Al wat (is) is sy masker, 'n persona, 'n vertolkte karakter waaraan die vertolking onttrek en 'n onbeslisbaarheid gepredikeer word · 'n bepaalde/bepalende dekonstruksie. / The story told here is one of a lad who leaves his parental home to take care of himself. It is the story of the postmodern scientist who after a period of modernistic adolescence must give up the safe security of his cosmic existence in the quest for an adult self reliance. But when he finds himself as the I who precedes every psychophysical and rational-empirical reality, it is only to discover that this I is neither experience nor being, that here he (is) nothing but the relationship of this life with death. In order to grasp something of this, he has to see himself as a Lacanian phallus.He is the image of the vital flow that can play its role only when veiled. His construction always already requires his destruction. What (is) is his mask, a persona, an interpreted character from whom the interpretation is being withdrawn and an undecidability predicated- a determinated/determinating deconstruction. / Psychology / D. Phil (Sielkunde)

Text in Afrikaans / Die verhaal wat hier vertel word is die van 'n jongeling wat sy ouerhuis verlaat om vir homself te sorg. Dit is die verhaal van die postmodernistiese wetenskaplike wat na 'n tydperk van modernistiese adolessensie moet afstand doen van die geborgenheid van sy kosmiese bestaan om 'n volwasse selfaangewesenheid nate streef. Maar wanneer hy homself (be)vind as die ek wat elke psigo-fisiese en rasioneel-empiriese werklikheid voorafgaan, is dit net om te ontdek dat hierdie ek nog ervaring nog wese is, dat hy hier niks anders (is) nie as 'n verwantskap van hierdie lewe met die dood. Om iets hiervan te begryp moet hy homself as 'n Lacaanse fallus aanskou. Hy is die beeld van die lewensvloed wat sy rol slegs in versluiering kan speel. Sy konstruksie verg altyd alreeds sy destruksie. Al wat (is) is sy masker, 'n persona, 'n vertolkte karakter waaraan die vertolking onttrek en 'n onbeslisbaarheid gepredikeer word · 'n bepaalde/bepalende dekonstruksie. / The story told here is one of a lad who leaves his parental home to take care of himself. It is the story of the postmodern scientist who after a period of modernistic adolescence must give up the safe security of his cosmic existence in the quest for an adult self reliance. But when he finds himself as the I who precedes every psychophysical and rational-empirical reality, it is only to discover that this I is neither experience nor being, that here he (is) nothing but the relationship of this life with death. In order to grasp something of this, he has to see himself as a Lacanian phallus.He is the image of the vital flow that can play its role only when veiled. His construction always already requires his destruction. What (is) is his mask, a persona, an interpreted character from whom the interpretation is being withdrawn and an undecidability predicated- a determinated/determinating deconstruction. / Psychology / D. Phil (Sielkunde)

Il tema dell’unità/unificazione della scienza è radicato nella storia e nella teoria dell’epistemologia del XX secolo. Il presente lavoro riprende tale tema e lo applica alla psicologia in generale e alla psicologia clinica in particolare, con un approccio sia teorico sia empirico. In particolare, la discussione sulla frammentazione della psicologia ha radici nella riflessione filosofica relativa all’unità o pluralità del metodo scientifico e a temi contigui, quali il linguaggio scientifico, le leggi e gli oggetti d’indagine della scienza. In questa cornice di riferimento, viene analizzato dettagliatamente il fenomeno della frammentazione della psicologia tramite l’esposizione critica delle proposte avanzate nella letteratura per la sua unificazione. Quindi, vengono evidenziati alcuni problemi centrali che riguardano diversi livelli di analisi, da quello socio-istituzionale a quello metodologico, in riferimento alla psicologia generale e alla psicologia clinica. E’ entro questo scenario che si situa la ricerca empirica, realizzata al fine di esplorare la rappresentazione emozionale della disciplina, in quanto scienza e professione, da parte degli psicologi italiani. La comparazione tra la disamina teorica e i risultati della ricerca empirica portano a concludere che per la psicologia è fondamentale riappropriarsi di quegli strumenti concettuali che possano meglio coordinare i rapporti tra dati, teorie e applicazioni pratiche. / The issue of the unity/unification of science has its roots in the history and theory of 20th Century epistemology. The present research addresses this issue and implements it in psychology and in clinical psychology, with both a theoretical and empirical approach. In particular, the topic of the fragmentation of psychology is connected to the philosophical reflection regarding the unity or plurality of the scientific method and to contiguous issue as the scientific language, the laws and science’s objects of interest. Within such a framework, the phenomenon of psychology’s fragmentation is examined in detail through the critical analysis of the proposals proposed in the unification literature. Then, some key problems regarding different levels of analysis, from socio-institutional to methodological, are highlighted, with regards to general psychology and clinical psychology. In this scenario, the empirical research is aimed to explore the emotional representations of Italian psychologist about their own discipline, as a science and as a profession. The comparison between the theoretical examination and the outcomes of the empirical research lead to the conclusion that is crucial for psychology to manage those conceptual tools which are able to better coordinate the relationships between data, theories and practical applications.