Autism as a differing form of intelligence: A step forward or backward?
In this article, we examine and evaluate Laurent Mottron's theory of autism as described in his book L'autisme : une autre intelligence (Mottron, 2004). This review article contains four parts. In the first part, we summarize Mottron's conception of Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD), with his focus on high functioning people, a group he considers much larger than formerly thought and neglected in current literature or service networks. He calls this group PDDWID (Pervasive Developmental Disorders Without Intellectual Deficiency) and creates an expanded new definition of autism. Secondly, we examine his theory of a different intelligence as displayed by ”autistic” people. We conclude that his conceptual assertions on this issue lack evidence-based validation, and lead to misinterpretation of the strengths and deficits of persons with ASD. Thirdly, we examine his appraisal of autism treatment. We conclude that he underestimates the value of early intensive behavioral intervention, and more generally of applied behavior analysis for the whole spectrum. His position on TEACCH as the main psychosocial and educational response for persons with ASD is inadequately justified, and anachronistic. Fourthly, Mottron's approach to the study of emotions based on autobiographical materials and introspection is a misleading avenue as a primary research method. Concluding comments question his dialectical stand contrasting autistics and non-autistics, his social activism for high functioning ASD persons, and his ideological endorsement of autism as a culture.