ABSTRACT
Autism is a complex developmental disability that occurs, typically, during the first three years of life and is approximately four times more common in boys than girls. It was first described by LeoKanner (1943), who named the pattern of behaviour he observed in a small group of young children 'early infantile autism'. He chose the term 'autos' (self) to describe the children's apparently 'inward looking' behaviour. A little later, and separately,Asperger (1944) wrote an account of some older children that overlapped, to some extent, with Kanner's ideas. Asperger also used the term 'autistic' in his description.
