Comparison of Reading the Mind in the Eyes, Selective Attention and Working Memory in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis and Non-Patients

Abstract

The aim of this study was to compare reading the mind in the eyes and executive functions (selective attention and working memory) in patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and non-patients. Participants were included of 40 patients with MS and 40 non-patients that matched in ages, education and sex. Instruments including Reading mind in the eyes (Baron-Cohen and et., 2001), N back (Kirchner, 1958) and Stroop (Stroop, 1935) have been used to investigate reading the mind in the eyes, working memory and selective attention. MANOVA showed a significant difference between the patients and non-patients in the ‘reading the mind through the eyes’ test, the working memory components (the correct response and the mean of the response time) as well as the incongruent items as the components of selective attention. The comprehensive impact of MS disease on cognitive domains highlights the importance of addressing its cognitive aspects along with the development of effective therapeutic interventions.

Keywords

• multiple sclerosis
• reading the mind in the eyes
• selective attention
• working memory