Are the "autistic traits" and "broader autism phenotype" concepts real or mythical?

The concepts “autistic traits” and “broader autism phenotype” are not officially recognised by the diagnostic authorities. The broader phenotype of autism is regarded as a sub-clinical presentation of behaviours or traits qualitatively similar to features associated with autism and often referred to as “autistic traits”. We consider how the concept of a broader autism phenotype originated, undertake a brief review and comparison of the theoretical perspectives on autism and “autistic traits”, analyse the statement sets in four instruments used for identifying so-called “autistic traits”, and review the justifications for a broader autism phenotype. We conclude that the concept of “autistic traits” arises from a misuse of language, that the absence of autistic traits indicates that there is no such thing as a “broader autism phenotype”, and that apparent evidence for the existence of a broader phenotype is more likely evidence for the population of autistic people being larger than suspected

Introduction aux Études critiques en autisme (ÉCA) issues de la recherche anglophone

Within the historic context of a distinct lack of autistic people’s representation in research, a body of emancipatory research is emerging under the banner of critical autism studies (CAS). The focus of CAS is the co-creation of scientific knowledge to produce research by and for the autistic community. Most CAS research emanates from the United Kingdom and Australia (e.g., Chown et al., 2017; Pellicano et al., 2014), with little present within Francophone academia in French as emancipatory design in disability research has only emerged since the 2010s. This paper aims to introduce CAS from the Anglophone academia. We begin by stating the fundamental principles of the neurodiversity movement in which CAS has taken root (Chamak, 2010; et al.; Nicolaidis, 2012). Next, we contrast the predominant medical model with the social model of disability (Chamak, 2010, Rosqvist et al., 2020). We then discuss CAS principles such as acknowledgement of power imbalances, recognition of autistic people’s meaningful input to research, and inclusiveness through adapting the research environment (Waltz 2009; Fletcher-Watson et al. 2019; Pickard et al., 2021; Rosqvist et al., 2019). We consider potential obstacles to CAS within the academic culture, such as lack of trusting relationships, practical and systemic barriers, and limited investment to support collaborative research (Pickard et al., 2021; Rosqvist et al., 2019). This paper concludes by discussing the need for a change in the language used to refer to autism (Fletcher-Watson et al., 2019; Woods, 2017) and environmental modifications to facilitate fair and socially just inclusion of neurodivergent people (Fletcher-Watson et al., 2019), within research and wider society

England and Autism

The history of Autism is a discourse (Waltz 2013), a journey through a disputed landscape, whose territories are alternatively staked by Politics, Education, Society, and Culture. It is diachronic in nature, as the knowledge of the present is built upon the past, but a diachronic that has progressed differently in different states, at different rates as each impact upon each other. Essentially its origins are lost in myth (Frith 1992) but its presence has always been felt in one way or another, even before the concept of autism was framed in the Western psychiatric narrative

Rates of species introduction to a remote oceanic island

The introduction of species to areas beyond the limits of their natural distributions has a major homogenizing influence, making previously distinct biotas more similar. The scale of introductions has frequently been commented on, but their rate and spatial pervasiveness have been less well quantified. Here, we report the findings of a detailed study of pterygote insect introductions to Gough Island, one of the most remote and supposedly pristine temperate oceanic islands, and estimate the rate at which introduced species have successfully established. Out of 99 species recorded from Gough Island, 71 are established introductions, the highest proportion documented for any Southern Ocean island. Estimating a total of approximately 233 landings on Gough Island since first human landfall, this equates to one successful establishment for every three to four landings. Generalizations drawn from other areas suggest that this may be only one-tenth of the number of pterygote species that have arrived at the island, implying that most landings may lead to the arrival of at least one alien. These rates of introduction of new species are estimated to be two to three orders of magnitude greater than background levels for Gough Island, an increase comparable to that estimated for global species extinctions (many of which occur on islands) as a consequence of human activities

General Practitioner Autism Training and Mandatory Medical Training: A Cross-Sectional Study of GPs’ Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices

Numerous physical conditions appear with increased frequency in autistic individuals in comparison to their non-autistic peers. These co-existing conditions are known to lead to higher morbidity, lower quality of life, and lower life expectancy in autisticadults. There is substantial evidence in the literature that many, if not most, General Practitioners (GPs) in the United Kingdom do not have the necessary understanding of autism to enable them to offer the same standard of service to their autistic patients that their non-autistic patients receive. This research project was set up, inter alia, to explore the attitudes of GPs to the introduction of autism training and the contentious issue of making GP training on any subject mandatory rather than voluntary. We wanted to better understand how autism training for GPs might be developed to maximise "take-up" and “buy-in” given that the demands on their time, including training demands, are such that autism is only one of many conditions vying for training time and mandatory training is anathema to many GPs. Key findings were that nearly three quarters of our respondents strongly agreed that training in autism is important for GPs, the same percentage of our participants had received little or no formal autismtraining, and there was a general dislike of any training being made mandatory. Training should be focused on barriers faced by autistic people in accessing healthcare as well as on autism as a medical condition. No respondent had received a significant level of training in autism although 40% of participants who had received training had been trained by an autistic individual

Barriers to healthcare and a ‘triple empathy problem’ may lead to adverse outcomes for autistic adults: A qualitative study

Autistic people experience more co-occurring health conditions and, on average, die younger than non-autistic people. Despite growing awareness of health inequities, autistic people still report barriers to accessing healthcare. We aimed to explore the experiences of autistic people accessing healthcare, shining a light on the complex interplay of relevant factors and to explain, at least in part, the possible reasons underling health disparities and adverse health outcomes. This is a qualitative study from an autistic research team. Data were collected from 1248 autistic adults as part of a large, mixed-methods, international survey exploring barriers to primary healthcare. This article reports the qualitative findings, following a thematic analysis. Using our exploratory findings, we then constructed a model to explain the reported experiences. Respondents reported a variety of barriers. Here, our article gives voice to their stories, in their own words. Themes included: early barriers; communication mismatch; doubt – in oneself and from doctors; helplessness and fear; and healthcare avoidance and serious adverse health outcomes. Our constructed model outlines a chronological journey through which healthcare access barriers may lead to adverse health outcomes. Our findings also build on the double empathy problem, situating this in a medical context, proposing a triple empathy problem

What measurable zero point fluctuations can(not) tell us about dark energy

We show that laboratory experiments cannot measure the absolute value of dark energy. All known experiments rely on electromagnetic interactions. They are thus insensitive to particles and fields that interact only weakly with ordinary matter. In addition, Josephson junction experiments only measure differences in vacuum energy similar to Casimir force measurements. Gravity, however, couples to the absolute value. Finally we note that Casimir force measurements have tested zero point fluctuations up to energies of ~10 eV, well above the dark energy scale of ~0.01 eV. Hence, the proposed cut-off in the fluctuation spectrum is ruled out experimentally.Comment: 4 page

Schools, religion, and affect: unpacking Australian educator discomfort

Published online: 24 Apr 2023. OnlinePublReligious bigotry, including incidents of discrimination and violence based on religion, continues to rise across Australia. Religion is consequently considered a destabilising factor in Australia’s commitment to diversity. But does Australia’s religious diversity pose a threat to social cohesion or an opportunity? In Australia’s public schools, despite significant curricular and pedagogical advances in the areas of equity and inclusion, it remains unclear how and to what extent educators support the diverse religious identities of learners. Informed by an affective-discursive analytic, this study unpacks a series of emotional encounters at one primary public school in Sydney that serves a community where most families selfidentify with a religion. Educators were invited to discuss how their school responds to religious diversity. This article explores the discomforting affects that entangle liberal humanist commitments to freedoms and secular schooling that emerged in focus groups. The article argues that emotional responses to learners’ religious diversity, particularly of fear or apprehension, speak to a broader national teacher education context in which how religious and secular beliefs and knowledges should come into conversation remains unsettled. If Australian teacher education is to prepare educators for social cohesion, how can learners’ religious identities be genuinely included in curriculum and pedagogy?Nadeem Memon, Samantha Schulz, Stephen Kelly and Dylan Chow

Autism community research priorities: the potential of future research to benefit autistics

Despite the enormous amounts of money spent on autism research, there has been little focus to date on what members of the autistic community believe should be prioritised by autism researchers. Our systematic review of the literature identified three published studies that had developed wide-ranging autism research priority sets. We undertook an in-depth analysis of these priorities sets to determine whether research focused on each priority had the potential to benefit the well-being of and/or emancipate autistic individuals. For this purpose, we used published ‘inclusive research’ criteria. We also compared the three sets of autism research priorities in the context of autistic well-being and emancipation. Our findings demonstrated substantial differences between the priorities in the studies in terms of whether they might benefit and/or be emancipatory for autistic people. Autistic people were a small minority of participants in studies where participant numbers had been recorded. There has yet to be a study focused solely on understanding the autism research priorities of autistic adults