Autism: A Very Short Introduction - Softcover

Frith, Uta

  • 3.39 out of 5 stars
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9780199207565: Autism: A Very Short Introduction
Softcover
ISBN 10: 0199207569 ISBN 13: 9780199207565
Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2008

Synopsis

What causes autism? Is it a genetic disorder, or due to some unknown environmental hazard? Are we facing an autism epidemic? What are the main symptoms, and how does it relate to Asperger syndrome? Everyone has heard of autism, but the disorder itself is little understood. It has captured the public imagination through films and novels portraying individuals with baffling combinations of disability and extraordinary talent, and yet the reality is that it often places a heavy burden on sufferers and their families. This Very Short Introduction offers a clear statement on what is currently known about autism and Asperger syndrome. Explaining the vast array of different conditions that hide behind these two labels, and looking at symptoms from the full spectrum of autistic disorders, it explores the possible causes for the apparent rise in autism and also evaluates the links with neuroscience, psychology, brain development, genetics, and environmental causes including MMR and Thimerosal. This VSI also explores the psychology behind social impairment and savantism, and sheds light on what it is like to live inside the mind of the sufferer.

About the Series: Combining authority with wit, accessibility, and style, Very Short Introductions offer an introduction to some of life's most interesting topics. Written by experts for the newcomer, they demonstrate the finest contemporary thinking about the central problems and issues in hundreds of key topics, from philosophy to Freud, quantum theory to Islam.

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About the Author

Uta Frith is Professor of Cognitive Development at University College London and Deputy Director of the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience at UCL. She is the author of many articles and books, including Autism: Explaining the Enigma; Autism and Asperger Syndrome; and Autism in History: The Case of Hugh Blair of Borgue (with Rab Houston).

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Publisher
Oxford University Press
Publication date
2008
Language
English
ISBN 10 
0199207569
ISBN 13 
9780199207565
Binding
Paperback
Edition number
1
Number of pages
129
Rating
  • 3.39 out of 5 stars
    649 ratings by Goodreads