title: Developmental levels of social cognition in head-injury patients.
abstract: Ten adults, who had sustained a closed head injury, were interviewed regarding their self-understanding, concepts of persons, and interpersonal negotiation strategies. Responses were evaluated in terms of developmental levels of social cognition. Levels of interpersonal negotiation strategies were significantly lower than levels of self-understanding, descriptions of psychological characteristics of self were at a significantly higher level than descriptions of active and physical characteristics of self. Within interpersonal conflict situations, proposed solutions were at a significantly lower level than the justifications offered for the solutions. In general, developmental levels of social cognition were comparable to levels exhibited by non-clinical samples of adolescents. The two areas in which the head-injury patients appeared to perform at a significantly higher level than adolescents were their justifications for their proposed solutions to the interpersonal conflict situations and their ability to express the emotional consequences of interpersonal conflict.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant 48859.
authors.forename: K R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Van Horn
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Levine
authors.forename: C L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Curtis
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001364:Awareness; D001925:Brain Damage, Chronic / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D016489:Head Injuries, Closed / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010553:Personality Development; D012649:Self Concept; D012917:Social Adjustment; D012919:Social Behavior