Discussion of the history of ASD and the changing view of people with ASD

Despite autism research only gathering momentum in the early twentieth century there exist examples in history that suggest individuals with these traits have been part of society for many years. Wing (as cited in awares.com) suggests that stories of fairy changeling children from the past were in fact describing children with autism. In the book Little Flowers of St Francis, describing the work of St Francis of Assisi, (1818- 1226) Brother Jupiter exhibits autistic characteristics including literal interpretation of verbal instructions, unusual behaviour when in a stressful situation and possible epileptic seizures. In 1801 the French doctor, Itard, took care of a 12 year old boy who had been living wild and showed many characteristics common to autism including remaining mute even when exposed to language, a need for order and an inability to transfer routine behaviour from one situation to another. The history of ASD time-line accompanying this discussion illustrates an explosion of research and action in this field in the last 30 years. This began gathering momentum in the 1930s when earlier psychoanalytical theories of autism proposed by Kanner and also Bettleheim were influenced strongly by Freuds psychoanalytical approach. This idea that autism was a result of the childs environment and interaction with their family, especially the mother, resulted in many children being institutionalised. Running concurrently with this was the classification in both DSM-I (1952) and DSM-II (1968) which identified individuals with autistic traits as having childhood schizophrenia. These combined factors fostered a misunderstanding of autism that was detrimental to both the individuals with autism and their families. When Rimland suggested a biological component to autism in 1964 the scope of research widen beyond the childs family. A year later the Autism Society of America was founded by parents of children with autism including doctors Rimland and Sullivan. This was the first significant community of practice to advocate for autism. In 1969 in New Zealand a similar group was established as a subcommittee of the IHC (Intellectually Handicapped Children) and later this developed into Autism New Zealand Inc. This period in autism history reflects a change in perspective where parents began to seek help and support from professionals and others in a similar situation and where a wealth of educational information was accessible through the internet, meetings, workshops and publications. In 1971 autism was recognised as being a separate condition from childhood schizophrenia and in 1979 the Triad of Impairments was identified by Wing. In 1980 DSM-III recognised infantile autism as a pervasive developmental disorder, listing 6 identifying characteristics. Following this a variety of behavioural, biological and cognitive theories emerged to account

for one or many of the core characteristics of autism but many of them could not be proved and none could account for all aspects of autism. In 1987 DSM-III was amended replacing the term infantile autism with autistic disorders and 16 new diagnostic criteria added. In 1991 Wing recognised Aspergers Syndrome as a form of autism and proposed that autism is a spectrum of disorders. The characteristics exhibited will vary between individuals on the autistic spectrum both in appearance and in severity. These advancements were matched by a rapid increase in the number of reported cases of autism in America growing from 15 in every 10, 000 in 1996 to 1 in 88 in 2012. Still more theories were proposed to explain this increase including environmental toxins, in utero risks and genetics. Some sought to identify indicators for children at risk of developing autism or discover an earlier course of intervention. Some endeavoured to offer a cure and others examined prevention. However, still no single theory has been proved conclusively and many, such as the link to the MMR vaccine, have been disproved. The rapid increase in the prevalence of autism is frequently attributed to the improvements in diagnosis and the recognition of a broad spectrum of behaviours falling under the autism umbrella rather than to an underlying cause. As autism occurs more frequently in our schools and communities the perspectives of society towards these individuals continues to evolve. An increasing percentage of the population know of an individual with autism or are involved in supporting children with autism and their families. The portrayal of autism in the media mirrors this increased awareness. The 1988 film Rain Man portrays the leading character as a savant, a characteristic that many in society in general associate strongly with autism. However, the more recent films Snow Cake (2007) and Black Balloon (2008) afford an opportunity to educate society in the complex behaviours of people with autism and the effects of autism on the whole family. A growth in the number of real life stories delivered through the internet, film or books, the most well-known possibly being Temple Grandins Thinking In Pictures, also serve to educate and inform about autism. The change in perspectives that has developed across the course of ASD history could be attributed to research, communities of practice, improved diagnostic criteria, media portrayal or a combination of all of these. The result has been the increased acceptance of autism by many in society. However, there is still much work to be done before autism is fully accepted as a difference not a disability and accepted as a different way of thinking from which many autistic people do not want to be cured. If I could snap my fingers and be nonautistic, I would n ot. Autism is part of what I am (Temple Grandin, 1995).

References
Autism: Rise of a disorder. (2011). Retrieved from Los Ageles Times: http://timelines.latimes.com/autism-history/ Autism History And Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved from The Autistic Spectrum: http://stevens_mom.tripod.com/id49.html Autism interactive timeline. (n.d.). Retrieved from Kaiser Permanente: Division of Research: http://www.dor.kaiser.org/external/dorexternal/autism/timelines/index.aspx Autism timeline 1 of 5 - timeline help. (n.d.). Retrieved from Timeline Help: http://www.timeline-help.com/autism-timeline.html History of autism. (n.d.). Retrieved from Autism Uk independent: http://www.autismuk.com/?page_id=1043 Temple Grandin Quotes. (n.d.). Retrieved from Brainy Quote: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/t/temple_grandin.html