4 ms·

"If you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism." -- Stephen Shore, professor of special education at Adelphi University and person wit

by dghf 10y ago

"If you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism." -- Stephen Shore, professor of special education at Adelphi University and person with autism.

Kenji 10y ago
Of what use is a classification system when the elements belonging to the same class have no general, discernible commonalities?
- dghf 10y ago
  There are commonalities. IIRC, a diagnosis of autism requires significant impairment in all three of, and severe impairment in at least one of: - social skills - communication skills - rigidity (reliance on routine) That doesn't stop a wide variation in how those manifest in individuals, nor make the diagnosis meaningless.
- lasfter 10y ago
  There may be general discernible commonalities, but autism is a spectrum and its symptoms do not prescribe a personality.
- theoh 10y ago
  Psychiatric classifications do tend to be problematic because personality is so complex. It's not like botany.
  - Kenji 10y ago
    I agree. I wish the field of psychiatry would address these problems honestly and scientifically, rather than inventing and voting disorders into their manual.
    - Silfen 10y ago
      The DSM exists for billing purposes. It's not exactly a scientific taxonomy of psychiatric disorders.
  - munificent 10y ago
    > It's not like botany. Hell, even botany is complex. Every Wikipedia article I read on a plant species seems to invariably have a long section talking about various places the plant has been on the taxonomic tree at different points in time and how scientists still aren't sure where to stick it.
anotherevan 10y ago
Throwing out your pet quote like that was much like reading a microsoft help manual. Technically correct, but no help at all. It didn't really address djrobstep's post apart from a trite, "Everyone is different," observation, and certainly didn't address the real pain and grief there can be, caring and loving someone with such serious disabilities. I think removing the Asperger's from the DSM was in many ways a disservice. It was a useful distinction of high level autistics, which is really the group the article is talking about for the most part, to the more seriously effected like djrobstep's brother. And to finish with a quote of my own: “In an ideal world the scientist should find a method to prevent the most severe forms of autism but allow the milder forms to survive. After all, the really social people did not invent the first stone spear. It was probably invented by an Aspie who chipped away at rocks while the other people socialized around the campfire. Without autism traits we might still be living in caves.” -- Temple Grandin

by dghf 10y ago

"If you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism." -- Stephen Shore, professor of special education at Adelphi University and person with autism.

Kenji 10y ago

Of what use is a classification system when the elements belonging to the same class have no general, discernible commonalities?

dghf 10y ago
There are commonalities. IIRC, a diagnosis of autism requires significant impairment in all three of, and severe impairment in at least one of: - social skills - communication skills - rigidity (reliance on routine) That doesn't stop a wide variation in how those manifest in individuals, nor make the diagnosis meaningless.
lasfter 10y ago
There may be general discernible commonalities, but autism is a spectrum and its symptoms do not prescribe a personality.
theoh 10y ago
Psychiatric classifications do tend to be problematic because personality is so complex. It's not like botany.
- Kenji 10y ago
  I agree. I wish the field of psychiatry would address these problems honestly and scientifically, rather than inventing and voting disorders into their manual.
  - Silfen 10y ago
    The DSM exists for billing purposes. It's not exactly a scientific taxonomy of psychiatric disorders.
- munificent 10y ago
  > It's not like botany. Hell, even botany is complex. Every Wikipedia article I read on a plant species seems to invariably have a long section talking about various places the plant has been on the taxonomic tree at different points in time and how scientists still aren't sure where to stick it.

anotherevan 10y ago

Throwing out your pet quote like that was much like reading a microsoft help manual. Technically correct, but no help at all. It didn't really address djrobstep's post apart from a trite, "Everyone is different," observation, and certainly didn't address the real pain and grief there can be, caring and loving someone with such serious disabilities. I think removing the Asperger's from the DSM was in many ways a disservice. It was a useful distinction of high level autistics, which is really the group the article is talking about for the most part, to the more seriously effected like djrobstep's brother. And to finish with a quote of my own: “In an ideal world the scientist should find a method to prevent the most severe forms of autism but allow the milder forms to survive. After all, the really social people did not invent the first stone spear. It was probably invented by an Aspie who chipped away at rocks while the other people socialized around the campfire. Without autism traits we might still be living in caves.” -- Temple Grandin