ABSTRACT

There has been a remarkable transformation in the public status of autism over the past 20 years, particularly in the last decade. This is partly the result of developments in a number of academic and professional areas – education, psychology, psychiatry – which are the main focus of this chapter. As the worlds of work, leisure and culture have been transformed by computers, the apparent affinity of some autistic individuals for information technology has encouraged a new interest in autism, especially in its ‘higher-functioning’ forms. The cultural fascination with autism is reflected in a profusion of articles and books, films and television programmes. The emergence of the politics of identity – and its impact on issues of disability, deviance and mental health – has inevitably influenced some individuals who identify themselves as being on the autistic spectrum.