The development of ideas about the nature of autism is described, covering myths and legends, accounts of individuals in the historical literature, the search for identifiable subgroups, Kanner's autistic and Asperger syndromes, and the current view of a wide spectrum. Changes in theories of aetiology are outlined, including the early magical and mystical beliefs, the era when purely psychological and emotional causes were promulgated, and the present day research into biological mechanisms. The major advances in understanding the neurological and psychological aspects of autism, which have led to the development of special methods of education, are discussed. The rate of increase in knowledge in recent years gives hope for future progress in understanding and treatment.
ANTHONY, E. J. (1958a) 'An Etiological Approach to the Diagnosis of Psychosis in Childhood', Revue de Psychiatrie Infantile25: 89-96.
2.
ANTHONY, E. J. (1958b) 'An Experimental Approach to the Psychopathology of Childhood Autism', British Journal of Medical Psychology21: 211-225.
3.
ASPERGER, H. (1944) 'Die autistischen Psychopathen im Kindesalter', Archiv fur Psychiatrie und Nervenkrankheiten 117: 76-136. Trans. U. FRITH in U. FRITH (ed.) (1991) Autism and Asperger Syndrome, pp. 37-92. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
4.
BARON-COHEN, S. , COX, A., BAIRD, G., SWETTENHAM, J., NIGHTINGALE, N., MORGAN, K., DREW, A. &CHARMAN, T. (1996) 'Psychological Markers in the Detection of Autism in Infancy in a Large Population', British Journal of Psychiatry168: 158-163.
5.
BAUMAN, M. & KEMPER, T. (1994) 'Neuroanatomic Observations of the Brain in Autism', in M. BAUMAN & T. KEMPER (eds) The Neurobiology of Autism, pp. 119-114. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins.
6.
BOLTON, P. , MACDONALD, H., PICKLES, A., RIOS, P., GOODE, S., CROWSON, M., BAILEY, A. &RUTTER, M. (1994) 'A Case-Control Family History Study of Autism', Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry35: 877-900.
7.
BRAUNER, A. & BRAUNER, F. (1986) L'Enfant der&l: Histoire des autismes depuis les contes de fes. Toulouse: Privat.
8.
CARREY, N. J. (1995) 'Itard's Memoire on "Mutism Caused by a Lesion of the Intellectual Functions": A Historical Analysis', Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry34: 1665-1661.
9.
CREAK, E. M. (1964) 'Schizophrenic Syndrome in Childhood: Further Progress Report of a Working Party (April 1961)', Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology6: 530-535.
10.
CRITCHLEY, M. & EARL, C. J. C. (1932). 'Tuberose Sclerosis and Allied Conditions', Brain55: 311-346.
11.
DEMYER, M. K. (1975) 'Research in Infantile Autism: A Strategy and its Results', Biological Psychiatry10: 433-452.
12.
DEMYER, M. K. (1979) Parents and Children in Autism. Washington, DC: Winston.
13.
DESANCTIS, S. (1906) 'Sopra alcune varieta della demenza precoce', Rivista Sperimentale di Freniatria e di Medicina Legale32: 141-165.
14.
DESANCTIS, S. (1908) 'Dementia praecocissima catatonica oder katatonie des fruheron kindesalters?', Folia Neurobiologica2: 9-12.
15.
EARL, C. J. C. (1934) 'The Primitive Catatonic Psychosis of Idiocy', British Journal of Medical Psychology14: 230-253.
16.
EHLERS, S. & GILLBERG, C. (1993) 'The Epidemiology of Asperger Syndrome: A Total Population Study', Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry34: 1327-1350.
17.
FRITH, U. (1989) Autism: Explaining the Enigma, pp 42-43. Oxford: Blackwell.
18.
FRITH, U. (ed.) (1991) Autism and Asperger Syndrome. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
19.
GILLBERG, C. (1992) 'The Emmanuel Miller Memorial Lecture 1991. Autism and Autistic-Like Conditions: Subclasses among Disorders of Empathy', Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry33: 813-842.
20.
HASLAM, J. (1809) Observations on Madness and Melancholy, pp. 185-206. London: Haydon.
21.
HOWLIN, P. (1997a) Autism: Preparing for Adulthood. London: Routledge.
22.
HOWLIN, P. (1997b) 'Prognosis in Autism: Do Specialist Treatments Affect Outcome?', European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (in press).
23.
HULSE, W. C. (1954) 'Dementia Infantilis', Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases119: 471-477.
24.
HUNT, A. & SHEPHERD, C. (1993) 'A Prevalence Study of Autism in Tuberous Sclerosis', Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders23: 323-340.
25.
ITARD, J. M. G. (1801/1807) The Wild Boy of Aveyron, trans. G. & M. HUMPHREY (1967). New York: Appleton, Century, Crofts.
26.
JERVIS, G. A. (1963) 'The Clinical Picture', in F. L. LYMAN (ed.) Phenylketonuria, pp. 52-61. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas.
27.
JORDAN, R. & POWELL, S. (1995) Understanding and Teaching Children with Autism. Chichester: Wiley.
28.
KANNER, L. (1943) 'Autistic disturbances of Affective Contact', Nervous Child2: 217-250.
29.
KANNER, L. (1949) 'Problems of Nosology and Psychodynamics in Early Childhood Autism', American Journal of Orthopsychiatry19: 416-426.
30.
KANNER, L. (1964) A History of the Care and Study of the Mentally Retarded, pp. 7-7. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas.
31.
KANNER, L. &EISENBERG, L. (1956) 'Early Infantile Autism 1943-1955', American Journal of Orthopsychiatry26: 55-65.
32.
KOLVIN, I. (1971) 'Studies in the Childhood Psychoses. I: Diagnostic Criteria and Classification', British Journal of Psychiatry118: 381-384.
33.
LANE, H. (1977) The Wild Boy of Aveyron. London: Allen and Unwin.
34.
LOTTER, V. (1966) 'Epidemiology of Autistic Conditions in Young Children. I: Prevalence', Social Psychiatry1: 124-137.
35.
MAHLER, M. S. (1952) 'On Child Psychoses and Schizophrenia: Autistic and Symbiotic Infantile Psychoses', Psychoanalytic Study of the Child7: 286-305.
36.
MAUDSLEY, H. (1867) 'Insanity of Early Life', in The Physiology and Pathology of the Mind, 1st edn, pp. 259-386. New York: Appleton.
37.
POTTER, H. W. (1933) 'Schizophrenia in Children', American Journal of Psychiatry12: 1253-1269.
38.
RUTTER, M. (1970) 'Autistic Children: Infancy to Adulthood', Seminars in Psychiatry2: 435-450.
39.
TANTAM, D. (1991) 'Asperger Syndrome in Adulthood', in U. FRITH (ed.) Autism and Asperger Syndrome, pp. 147-183. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
40.
TREFFERT, D. (1989) Extraordinary People, pp. 3-15. New York: Bantam.
41.
VANKREVELEN, D. A. (1971) 'Early Infantile Autism and Autistic Psychopathy', Journal of Autism and Childhood Schizophrenia1: 82-86.
42.
VANKREVELEN, D. A. & KUIPERS, C. (1962) 'The Psychopathology of Autistic Psychopathy', Acta Paedopsychiatrica29: 22-31.
43.
WING, L. (1981) 'Asperger Syndrome: A Clinical Account', Psychological Medicine1: 115-129.
44.
WING, L. (1993) 'The Definition and Prevalence of Autism: A Review', European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry2: 61-74.
45.
WING, L. (1996) The Autistic Spectrum: A Guide for Parents and Professionals. London: Constable.
46.
WING, L. & GOULD, J. (1979) 'Severe Impairments of Social Interaction and Associated Abnormalities in Children: Epidemiology and Classification', Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders9: 11-29.
47.
WOLFF, S. (1995) Loners: The Life Path of Unusual Children. London: Routledge.
