ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book provides the first collection of case histories of patients with Asperger's syndrome who were treated psychotherapeutically within the general theoretical framework of the British Object Relations school of psychoanalysis. It explains a critical review of the cognitivist theories that have been advanced in the attempt to understand Asperger's syndrome. The book discusses the features of the condition that each of the theories accounts for or fails to account for and argues for the importance of considering the emotional as well as the cognitive dimension. It offers a commentary on Asperger's original descriptive paper from the point of view of a present-day child psychotherapist and also discusses the relevance of psychoanalytic concepts to Asperger's formulations. The book presents a meticulous account of processes in the treatment of adults with Asperger's syndrome, the first published account of work with adults.
