title: Theory of mind in Alzheimer disease: Evidence of authentic impairment during social interaction.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The present study aimed to investigate theory of mind (the ability to infer others' mental states) deficit in 20 patients with mild Alzheimer's disease and 20 healthy controls, with 2 theory of mind tasks, 1 of them being a real interactive task. Previous results concerning preserved or altered theory of mind abilities in Alzheimer's disease have been inconsistent and relationships with other cognitive dysfunctions (notably episodic memory and executive functions) are still unclear.
  
  
  METHODS
  The first task we used was a false belief paradigm as frequently used in literature whereas the second task, a referential communication task, assessed theory of mind in a real situation of interaction. Participants also underwent neuropsychological evaluation to investigate potential relationships between theory of mind and memory deficits.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results showed that Alzheimer patients presented a genuine and significant theory of mind deficit compared to control participants characterized notably by difficulties to attribute knowledge to an interlocutor in a real social interaction.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results further confirm that theory of mind is altered in early stages of Alzheimer dementia which is consistent with previous works. More specifically, this study is the first to objectivize this impairment in social interaction.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Parole et Langage, Aix-Marseille Université
authors.forename: Noémie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Moreau
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Parole et Langage, Aix-Marseille Université
authors.forename: Stéphane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rauzy
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Parole et Langage, Aix-Marseille Université
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Viallet
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Parole et Langage, Aix-Marseille Université
authors.forename: Maud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Champagne-Lavau
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000523:psychology*; D003142:Communication; D056344:Executive Function; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D061212:Memory, Episodic; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D012094:Repression, Psychology; D056345:Theory of Mind