ABSTRACT

This chapter explores the understandings of special interests, the constructed boundaries between 'appropriate' and 'inappropriate' interests, and whether the way children engage in their interests is viewed as acceptable or otherwise. It discusses Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) from the position of difference and societal inclusion, and draws on one core aspect of the diagnosis of ASD – special interests. From the analysis of the interviews with four mothers of children with a diagnosis of ASD, identified two core themes that specifically related to special interests: parental involvement in special interests and parental perceptions of the value of special interests, and the chapter details these themes. In order for ASD to be considered a difference rather than a deficit, a shift in taken-for-granted understandings about particular behaviours, such as special interests, needs to be accommodated more broadly.