I generally skip the Facebook app nonsense, but after a few friends took the “Autism Spectrum Quotient” inventory, I thought I’d complete it again. From the ASQ app: I’ve calculated my Autism Spectrum Quotient as 45, which is very high. Most women score about 15 and most men about 17.…
Tag: autism
ABC News offers the following: Autism Genes: Better Test May Help Screen Causes – ABC News I always find myself torn with stories like this. The part of me that embraces science would prefer scientific ways to diagnose individuals and count autism rates. Yet, I also wonder what becomes of…
I am somehow on a “Generation Rescue” mailing list. I have no idea how this happened, but it means I am learning just want the snake oil industry is pitching to parents: Children’s Liver Restorative Kit The foundation for any detox program is the body’s hardest working organ – the…
I had written a long reflection on the job hunt (better an essay someday) as I finished preparing yet another portfolio to send to a state university. I found myself focused on a comment from a search committee member. “You aren’t anything like Christopher in The Curious Incident. Are you…
The Chicago Tribune has a great story on how DAN! and other organizations use valid science to justify their “treatments” for autism. The sad fact that parents trust these quacks worries me. It’s also why I am not going to continue down the autism research path after I complete the…
While working on the research for my dissertation, I have read page after page on writing pedagogy asserting that the goal of a university writing course should be to teach students that knowledge is socially constructed and that “truth” is relative to culture and community. The problem with this assertion…
Hunting for work is never easy, but for individuals with disabilities, the question of “disclosure” arises. Do you tell an employer you are disabled? Do you assume certain group memberships or activities reveal the disability? What if people offering letters of reference mention the disability? Honestly, I don’t have any…
Time magazine has two stories on autism diagnostic rates. One report is on a careful census of adults, trying to determine if there is a real difference between generations. The second report is on a telephone survey that shows a sudden spike in rates based on poorly worded questions. I…
With the film Adam receiving good reviews, I thought it might be useful to reflect on autism and pop media. Generally, portrayals of autism have resembled what I consider fringe notions of individuals with autism disorders. The depictions are too close to the The Empty Fortress described by Bruno Bettelheim…
I’ve written many times that the diagnostic rate for any condition is not the same as the actual prevalence. Examples of sudden “explosions” in diagnoses, abound, from various cancers to mental health conditions. In some cases, diagnoses were impossible. In others, conditions were clarified and reclassified by improved science. Anyway……