I read Uta Frith's book Explaining the Enigma for the first time last year. After reading it, my question was: Why, in the 35 units that i had to take to get my credential in Special Education did no professor a.) mention this book b.) recommend this book? (Please note, that since the writing of this entry, it has come to my attention that professor Pamela Wolfberg uses this text in her autism class as required reading-) Subsequently i have found that this is a classic in the field of autism.
Why do i enjoy this book? Uta Frith does not seem to have an agenda. If she had an agenda it would be to report on how her explanations regarding the key challenges for a person with autism, have stood the test of time. She originally proposed (in 1989) that the key challenges people with autism faced were an inability to recognize and think about thoughts (theory of mind) and an inability to integrate pieces of information inot coherent wholes (central coherence). She suggested that it was here that the problems of communication, social interaction and flexibility originated. In the re-issue of this book, she has updated her proposal with recent studies that are relevant.
Her writing explores various theories, personalities and developments relevant to autism. There doesn't seem to be a value, or opinion attached to her subject matter. She uses words sparingly with precision and acuity. She gives a solid explanation with relevant examples to many frequently used terms in the study of autism: mind-blindness, theory of mind (mentalizing), epidemic vs. syndrome, the Sally-Anne experiment, central coherence, Anderson's model of intelligence, school intelligence vs. world intelligence, rote memory, single mindedness, detachment, systemizing vs. empathizing, stimulus over-selectivity and sensitivity, executive functions vs. disfunctions, stereotypic actions,
This is not a self help book, nor a personal account book. This is a well written and highly relevant book about autism; the theories behind many aspects of autism from its etiology, to the intricacies involved in diagnosis, to understanding the behavioral, social and neurological implications of autism. The tone of the book is scholarly, but engaging. This is an excellent book for someone who wants an accesible overview of autism as it has been studied in a historical and scientific context.
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