CLARIFYING THE SYNDROME SAVANT

 DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.8025670

 

Sérgio Rodrigues de Souza

Post-Ph.D. in Social Psychology. Scientific Consultant. Email: srgrodriguesdesouza@gmail.com .

 

Deborah Ketlyn Pacheco Ferreira

Bachelor's Degree in Veterinary Medicine at Faculdade Multivix - Pólo Vila Velha (ES). Email: deborapacheco768@gmail.com .

 

José Antônio Soares Abreu

Degree in Legal and Social Sciences. Master in Educational Sciences. Email: soares.jasa@gmail.com.

ABSTRACT

This article addresses the issue of individuals diagnosed with savant syndrome, a very rare type of intellectual manifestation in certain fields of knowledge in which its holder can be considered a prodigy. Its scientific relevance is presented in the sense of provoking a wide and deep discussion on the subject, in which, until the present moment, there is no answer that can clarify its manifestation and what mechanisms can be applied for the conduction of its knowledge in a way to promote real social inclusion. Its social relevance lies in showing that these individuals, in coherent acting situations, could live a normal life and without the excesses that have been placed on them, because of their sui generis conditions. In many cases these extraordinary abilities can be used as a form of social engagement. The disabled person can increase their communication and social interaction skills, promoting the development of everyday life habits and, with this, achieving a certain degree of independence. It is a bibliographical, factual research, based on authors who study the subject and executed with a critical bias, in such a way that it leads to solid arguments. The medical, psychological and pedagogical sciences have not yet been able to present any hypothesis that plausibly clarifies the savant syndrome and its occurrence. In this regard, we argue that the difficulty for this is found in the educational evaluation system, which uses the same and only evaluation instrument, tested and approved in normal individuals, who express themselves through oral language. It turns out that the savant has its own logic, a particular and very unique way of learning. In order to understand him and his mechanisms for absorbing experiences and even how he performs them, it is something that must be found from the observation and the particular study of such individuals, not having the possibility to carry out cross-sectional studies or any other modality that applies to normal individuals.

Keywords: Savant syndrome. Wise idiots. Cerebral hemispheres. Education.