From funding decisions to scientific fraud, a wide range of societal factors shape autism research.
The Spectrum team highlights five topics that distinguished autism research in 2020: diversity in data, gene therapies, subtyping, social circuitry and the ‘autism gene’ debate.
Waganesh Zeleke studies how cultural views can shape autistic people’s lives, as well as the lives of those around them.
Here is a roundup of news and research for the week of 7 December.
Autistic people are at an increased risk for intentional self-harm and death by suicide, but co-occurring psychiatric conditions may drive those behaviors.
Researchers expand on the already enormous progress made on the Human Proteome Project
Ami Klin wants researchers, clinicians and policymakers to think of autism as something inborn that only predisposes a child to certain traits. Early intervention can change the course of development.
Here is a roundup of news and research for the week of 30 November.
Kim Kaiser spoke with Spectrum about the nonprofit organization The Color of Autism, why researchers fail to reach Black families and what’s needed to fix that disparity.
As many headlines attest, encounters between autistic people and first responders become fraught far too often, leading to violence and lasting trauma. In this special report, we explore what research tells us about these interactions and training to improve them, as well as the challenges autistic people experience in the criminal justice system.
Inconsistent and underfunded training programs may hurt more than they help, experts say.
