Scientists should slow down and return to the basic tenets of research to regain the public’s trust.

Autism is not a developmental disorder, but rather the brain’s adaptive response to early genetic or environmental disturbances, says Mark Johnson.

A dearth of job-training programs and other services means that many young adults with autism struggle to lead productive, independent lives, suggests a national report. 

Many people with autism have trouble interpreting and responding to social cues. Studying how rats learn from each other can provide insights into the human social brain, says Amiel Rosenkranz.

The job of delivering interventions for autism often falls to overstretched teachers in schools with few resources. Melanie Pellecchia and David Mandell set out to find the ‘active ingredients’ of school-based interventions.

Some children with autism lose their diagnosis over time, but still struggle with language, learning and anxiety, says Lisa Shulman.

Trials to test drugs for autism suffer from subjective measurements and placebo effects. Helen Tager-Flusberg outlines how to ferret out the true effects of potential autism therapies.

A brain system called declarative memory may help people learn scripts and strategies that alleviate autism symptoms, say Michael Ullman and Mariel Pullman.

Opinions on autism from SFARI.org columnists.

Anxiety is one of the most common mental health conditions, as well as one of the most treatable. But when a person has autism, anxiety symptoms can be hard to see. Matthew Siegel calls for anxiety tests and treatments that are tailored to people with autism.