For the academic journal with the same name, see Autism (journal).
This article may be unbalanced toward certain viewpoints. Please improve the article by adding information on neglected viewpoints, or discuss the issue on the talk page.(January 2025)
Based on combination of clinical observation of behavior and development and comprehensive diagnostic testing completed by a team of qualified professionals (including psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, neuropsychologists, pediatricians, and speech–language pathologists). For adults, the use of a patient's written and oral history of autistic traits becomes more important
Autism spectrum disorder[a] (ASD), or simply autism, is a neurodevelopmental disorder "characterized by persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts" and "restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities".[11]Sensory abnormalities are also included in the diagnostic manuals. Common associated traits such as motor coordination impairment are typical of the condition but not required for diagnosis. A formal diagnosis requires that symptoms cause significant impairment in multiple functional domains; in addition, the symptoms must be atypical or excessive for the person's age and sociocultural context.[12][13]
Autism is a spectrum, meaning it manifests in various ways, with its severity and support needs varying widely across different autistic people.[12][13][14] For example, some autistic people are nonverbal, while others have proficient spoken language.[15][16] Public health authorities and guideline developers classify autism as a neurodevelopmental disorder,[12][17][13][18][19] but the autism rights movement (and some researchers) disagree with that classification.[20][21][22] The neurodiversity perspective has led to significant controversy among those who are autistic and advocates, practitioners, and charities.[23]
The combination of broader criteria, increased awareness, and the potential increase of actual prevalence has led to considerably increased estimates of autism prevalence since the 1990s.[31][32] The World Health Organization estimates about 1 in 100 children had autism between 2012 and 2021, as that was the average estimate in studies during that period, with a trend of increasing prevalence over time.[b][9][10] This increasing prevalence has contributed to the myth perpetuated by anti-vaccine activists that autism is caused by vaccines.[33]
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).
^Kapp, Steven K. Autistic community and the neurodiversity movement: Stories from the frontline. Springer Nature, 2020.
^Jaarsma, Pier, and Stellan Welin. "Autism as a natural human variation: Reflections on the claims of the neurodiversity movement." Health care analysis 20 (2012): 20-30.
^Dwyer, Patrick, et al. "Community views of neurodiversity, models of disability and autism intervention: Mixed methods reveal shared goals and key tensions." Autism (2024): 13623613241273029.
^Cite error: The named reference CDC 2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Bertelli MO, Azeem MW, Underwood L, Scattoni ML, Persico AM, Ricciardello A, Sappok T, Bergmann T, Keller R (2022), Bertelli MO, Deb S(, Munir K, Hassiotis A (eds.), "Autism Spectrum Disorder", Textbook of Psychiatry for Intellectual Disability and Autism Spectrum Disorder, Cham: Springer International Publishing, p. 391, doi:10.1007/978-3-319-95720-3_16, ISBN978-3-319-95720-3, retrieved 8 June 2022, Persons with autism spectrum disorder and/or other neurodevelopmental problems are more likely than the general population to have transgender identity, non-heterosexual sexual orientation, and other gender non-conformities.
^Kirkham P (1 April 2017). "'The line between intervention and abuse' – autism and applied behaviour analysis". History of the Human Sciences. 30 (2): 107–126. doi:10.1177/0952695117702571. ISSN0952-6951. S2CID152017417.