Adult Theory of Mind (A-ToM) Test: Stimulus Materials and Scoring Protocols for the A-ToM (2017) & A-ToM-Q (2022)

Full description

The A-ToM was designed to provide a measure of theory of mind (mind reading) for assessing social cognition difficulties in autistic adults who fall within the normal IQ range (i.e., IQs from 85 upward).

The 2017 paper (listed below) describes the original psychometric evaluation of the measure which requires free (open-ended) reports from participants. The 2022 paper (also listed below) uses a multiple-choice response format and provides the psychometric evaluation of that instrument.

Brewer, N., Young, R. L., & Barnett, E. (2017). Measuring Theory of Mind in adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 47(7), 1927-1941.

Brewer, N., Young, R. L., Norris, J. E., Maras, K., Michael, Z., & Barnett, E. (2022). A quick measure of theory of mind in autistic adults: Decision accuracy, latency and self-awareness. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 52(6), 2479-2496.

Important Notes:

• The 6 'social' items provide the Theory of Mind score; the 6 'physical' items are the control items. Scoring for each item is outlined in the scoring protocols.

• The instruments were designed and standardised for individuals aged 18 years and above - and the normative data reflect that.

• All other relevant information needed to guide use and interpretation is contained in the 2017 and 2022 papers cited above.

• A few recent scientific papers using the A-ToM or A-ToM-Q are listed below:

Brewer, N., & Young, R. L. (2026, in press). The vulnerability of autistic adults to criminal exploitation: Mismatches between legal defense arguments and empirical data. In M K. Miller, D. DeMatteo, & D. Krauss (Eds.), Advances in Psychology and Law. Springer.

Michael, Z., & Brewer, N. (2025). Detecting criminal intent in social interactions: The influence of autism and Theory of Mind. Law and Human Behavior, 49(1), 89-107.

Lim, A., Brewer, N., Aistrope, D., & Young, R. L. (2023). Response format changes the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test performance of autistic and non-autistic adults. Autism, 27(8), 2560-2565.

Brewer, N., Lucas, C. A., Lim, A., & Young, R. L. (2023). Detecting dodgy behavior: The role of autism, autistic traits, and theory of mind. Autism, 27(4), 1026-1035.

Lim, A., Brewer, N., & Young, R. L. (2023). Revisiting the relationship between cybercrime, autistic traits, and autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 53, 1319-1330.

Young, R. L., & Brewer, N. (2020). Brief report: Perspective taking deficits, autism spectrum disorder, and allaying police officers’ suspicions about criminal involvement. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 50, 2234-2239.

Brewer, N., Zoanetti, J., & Young, R. L. (2019). Convergent validity of the A-ToM (Adult Theory of Mind) test for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 37, 797-802