Research on social cognition often fails to capture the complexity and dynamics of real-life social interactions. For individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) social interactions are more effortful and complex in comparison to individuals without ASD. These difficulties are frequently explained in terms of Theory of Mind (ToM), defined as the capacity to attribute mental states to oneself and others. Traditional ToM measures rely on structured tasks and possibly fail to capture the spontaneous mentalizing of everyday life. 

The present study aims to capture the complexity of real-life social interactions by examining spontaneous ToM across ecologically valid contexts using naturalistic video stimuli (reality TV, news) and a rest condition. Following each condition, participants completed the ToM subdomain of the Amsterdam Resting State Questionnaire to assess the mentalizing content of spontaneous thought. The sample consisted of 33 individuals with ASD and 33 without ASD. Results showed a significant difference for ToM across contexts, with reality TV evoking the highest levels of ToM, followed by rest, and the lowest after news. Contrary to expectations, no significant differences were observed between groups. Both groups demonstrated comparable sensitivity to social context, as reflected in a significant increase in ToM from the news to reality TV context, without a significant group interaction. 

These findings, when carefully interpreted due to sample and measurement limitations, suggest that in a relatively high-functioning ASD group, social-cognitive functioning is comparable to non-ASD individuals, which contributes to a better understanding, improved assessment and intervention strategies.