The BPS has published new guidance for practitioner psychologists who work with people who have autism and their families and carers. The document, ‘Working with autism: best practice guidelines for psychologists’, is based on current...
autism
To watch The Reason I Jump is to be cast into a morass where emotions conflict with logic. Drawn from the book of the same name by the non-speaking autistic author Naoki Higashida and written when he was 13, the film is part-documentary, part-sensory-immersion and in...
My research interests are in attachment parenting, body image, eating behaviour, child-focused interventions, self-compassion and special educational needs (Fitch et al., 2020). With the Nutrition and Behaviour Unit, I am investigating the feeding practices and problems of...
We are becoming increasingly aware that females with autism are being mis- or under-diagnosed. Autism continues to be diagnosed at considerably lower rates in females than in males, with studies reporting a striking 1:4 ratio (Fombonne, 2009). This has often been attributed...
I was born in Barnsley, the third of five children, in many ways I am a classic ‘middle child’. I feel I have to try harder and this has made me more determined and competitive. I always thought big and I was the first to move away from home, family and Yorkshire and make...
Approximately 70-80 per cent of autistic children are thought to experience anxiety. Luke Beardon’s book, Avoiding Anxiety in Autistic Children: A Guide for Autistic Wellbeing, is an accessible and comprehensive guide for anyone who interacts with autistic children, written...
In 2017 I received a diagnosis of autism. During my diagnostic assessment, the Psychiatrist asked me a simple question with surprising consequences:
‘How do you feel about eye contact?’
‘Well’, I explained, ‘I look at someone for a few seconds, then take my cue...
This latest offering from Professor Baron-Cohen goes further than contextualising autism as a strengths-based difference and begins to develop our understanding of the autism neurotype within the evolution of human ingenuity. Baron-Cohen advances his theory that the ‘...
This moving documentary offers a curious and powerful insight into the life of world-known teenage climate activist, Greta Thunberg. Interspersed amongst her many powerful speeches, the audience are also privy to several intimate and funny ...
Hans Asperger was celebrated worldwide. The disability he described in 1944 was named after him and appeared in mainstream diagnostic manuals. His birthday, 18 February, was designated ‘International Asperger’s Day’ and countries across the world marked this date. For many,...