What is autism? The word autism comes originally from ‘autos’, the Greek word for ‘self’ and means, literally, being absorbed in oneself. In 1943, the psychiatrist Leo Kanner adopted the term to describe some of his child patients: they appeared isolated from the world, withdrawn from social contact,…
Do people with autism spectrum disorders lack a theory of mind? An important challenge for psychologists working on autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) is to explain why characteristic impairments occur in three different areas of functioning social interaction communication activities and interests One strategy for explaining…
Literacy is a cultural achievement We have noted elsewhere (Communication) that all human societies that have existed have had a fully developed spoken language. However, not all societies have had a written form of their spoken language. Evolutionarily, we know that speech/spoken language developed first and that…
What is dyslexia? Dyslexia involves difficulties in learning to read and write. However, this is not the only form of difficulty that people with dyslexia experience. Terminology There is a wide variety of terms used to describe specific difficulties in learning to read. The original term…
Personal experiences of living with autism The extracts below are about children and adults with autism. If you know someone with autism, the descriptions may well be familiar. For those of you have not had such close contact, they are designed to give an initial insight into what…
Scope This article introduces just a few of the many ways we can improve the effectiveness of our communications with people with learning disabilities. We will discuss five strategies. Maximizing the hearing environment It is estimated that over 40% of people with a learning disability have…
