A 2020 review by Tessa van Leeuwen, Janina Neufeld, James Hughes and Jamie Ward examined why people with autism are more likely than others to experience synaesthesia – the blending of the senses where, for example, letters appear coloured or words evoke tastes (pp. 433–434).
They found consistent evidence that synaesthesia is more common among autistic people, and that synaesthetes tend to score higher on the Autism Spectrum Quotient (a questionnaire measuring traits linked to autism), especially in attention to detail and sensory sensitivity (pp. 434–437).
Both conditions share key features:
a) a heightened awareness of sensory input (pp. 436–437);
b) a focus on details rather than global patterns (pp. 437–438); and
c) unusual brain connectivity – with stronger local rather than global links (pp. 434–436).
While autism can affect communication and social interaction, and synaesthesia brings unique sensory experiences, the two can sometimes combine to produce exceptional strengths. The authors describe a man with both conditions who memorised more than 20,000 digits of pi, saying each number had its own colour, texture and shape (pp. 438–439).
The paper suggests that both may stem from overlapping brain mechanisms – such as increased neural activity (“hyper-connectivity”) and highly specific sensory predictions that make perception unusually vivid or intense (pp. 439–442).
Understanding these shared processes may help us view autism not only through challenges but also through the richness of perception, creativity and memory it can bring (pp. 442–443).
Source: van Leeuwen et al. (2020), Cognitive Neuropsychology, 37 (7–8), 433–449.
Full text available at: https://www.tandfonline.com/
This is a neutral summary of the review.
Sean Kennedy
When autism and synaesthesia overlap, remarkable abilities can sometimes emerge.
A 2020 review by Tessa van Leeuwen, Janina Neufeld, James Hughes and Jamie Ward examined why people with autism are more likely than others…
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