Lovely little essay on neurotypical privilege

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Protogenoi
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07 Jan 2015, 11:43 am

kraftiekortie wrote:
They'll never be able to find that "one" autistic gene.


Especially since they've already found somewhere around 27 autistic genes... and counting...


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kraftiekortie
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07 Jan 2015, 11:45 am

Would you say that the 27 genes cause a "predisposition" towards autism, rather than a situation where autism is inevitable?



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07 Jan 2015, 11:49 am

We don't know at this point. We don't even know if we've discovered any "autism genes" - we've just found some that are associated with autism. There could be any number of reasons for that.



Protogenoi
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07 Jan 2015, 12:28 pm

kraftiekortie wrote:
Would you say that the 27 genes cause a "predisposition" towards autism, rather than a situation where autism is inevitable?

Yes, it's just an predisposition, it doesn't necessitate autism. The more of them you have the greater chance of having autism, but not greater severity. And so researchers have another 100 genes they are looking at to find association.
The whole thing is just expanding. It isn't very simple at all, in fact autism is probably spread throughout the human genome. A cure is fantastical and unrealistic.


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pj4990
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07 Jan 2015, 2:15 pm

Dillogic wrote:
God I hate the "privilege" talk, no matter what the subject (white male, Vorlon, black female, racoon, and whatnot).

Just a bunch of moaning.


That's exactly what I thought until I read that article, give it a chance, this actually uses it in a sensible way.



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07 Jan 2015, 4:30 pm

cyberdad wrote:
Medical professionals prescribe medication to patients with a diagnosed illness
Psychologists provide talk therapy to clients...

Yeah, that's why beginning with my intro psychology class, I was taught that distinction.

cyberdad wrote:
Good luck! Its good to have more of us represented in the medical circles :D

Thanks and I agree :D. I'm not sure how we would go about getting more of us in these positions though :/. I'm not sure if it would involve better resources (like improved interventions or therapies or schools) or something else altogether, but improvements could definitely be made in those areas, even for those who aren't interested in these types of careers.

The_Walrus wrote:
We don't know at this point. We don't even know if we've discovered any "autism genes" - we've just found some that are associated with autism. There could be any number of reasons for that.

That's true because genetics are complicated. Autism symptoms overlap with a lot of other disorders so it's possible that some of those genes are actually more associated with the known comorbid disorders instead of autism itself.


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B19
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07 Jan 2015, 5:09 pm

In reviewing this thread, which I began to generate discussion about the links between the neurodiversity, privilege, somehow the issue of separatism came up. I'm confused about the relevance this side issue - do you mean separatism within the ASD community being divided for or against a neurodiversity perspective, or separatism within the psychology/medical community developing from a schism between the two perspectives (the current vs neurodiverse) as the paradigm changes in time, or something else?



cyberdad
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07 Jan 2015, 7:41 pm

B19 wrote:
In reviewing this thread, which I began to generate discussion about the links between the neurodiversity, privilege, somehow the issue of separatism came up. I'm confused about the relevance this side issue - do you mean separatism within the ASD community being divided for or against a neurodiversity perspective, or separatism within the psychology/medical community developing from a schism between the two perspectives (the current vs neurodiverse) as the paradigm changes in time, or something else?


I think the OP was focusing on mental health professionals. However many on this thread are talking more broadly about autists versus NTs...

While it's possible for autistic communities to be established, separatism is a furfie and futile. It's a fantasy like the Douglas Adams book "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy" where dolphins and mice actually secretly live in their own intelligent societies. Many of us live in a fantasy that we can create a entirely self sufficient autistic community.



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07 Jan 2015, 7:48 pm

Ok, now I see it. I began the thread to consider the merits of a paradigm change, which would actually promote inclusion, not separatism - which is a different topic altogether from NT vs ASD separatism, and I hope the thread doesn't go off on that tangent. Thanks for the clarification Cyberdad.



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07 Jan 2015, 9:14 pm

I still have no idea what 'paradigm change' actually means.

Why can't people just write in clear English?



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07 Jan 2015, 9:18 pm

kraftiekortie wrote:
They'll never be able to find that "one" autistic gene.


They'll never find it because it doesn't exist. Even IF autism or A.S. turn out to have a basis in genetics, the notion that there is, or would be, a single gene for it is based upon a lack of understanding of how genes actually work. There is almost never a single gene for anything, a combination of factors, both environmental and hereditary, coming into play.



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07 Jan 2015, 9:24 pm

NiceCupOfTea wrote:
I still have no idea what 'paradigm change' actually means.

Why can't people just write in clear English?

It is just marketing speak for big change that will advance something.

Back to one of the main points. The reason why scientific jargon is used is because it has a clear definition unlike the words he used that can change definition at will since they never had a strict scientific definition. Thus, you can redefine words to prove your point. For example, one can see this in recent cases such as the increase in college rape. However, if you look at their research they have just changed the definition of rape to get the results they want. Hence, why I believe we should purge all social science and psychology as it has become not science but a massive brain washing machine that is going against the pursuit of understanding which science is.



Last edited by Orangez on 07 Jan 2015, 9:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Lintar
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07 Jan 2015, 9:24 pm

NiceCupOfTea wrote:
I still have no idea what 'paradigm change' actually means.

Why can't people just write in clear English?


A paradigm is an over-arching, presuppositional philosophy or assumption that is accepted as given, and which forms the basis for subsequent speculation about the nature of that which logically follows from it. For example, scientism (as opposed to 'science') is the belief that only that which can be demonstrated to be true via the scientific method actually has any value to society, and from this assumption flows the belief that (for example) naturalism is true and the supernatural not only does not exist, but that the concept itself is meaningless. When a change in a paradigm occurs it is usually revolutionary, and overturns a lot of intellectual baggage that has thus far accumulated.



Lintar
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07 Jan 2015, 9:35 pm

Orangez, you beat me to it by less than a minute. :(



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07 Jan 2015, 10:06 pm

Lintar wrote:
NiceCupOfTea wrote:
I still have no idea what 'paradigm change' actually means.

Why can't people just write in clear English?


A paradigm is an over-arching, presuppositional philosophy or assumption that is accepted as given, and which forms the basis for subsequent speculation about the nature of that which logically follows from it. For example, scientism (as opposed to 'science') is the belief that only that which can be demonstrated to be true via the scientific method actually has any value to society, and from this assumption flows the belief that (for example) naturalism is true and the supernatural not only does not exist, but that the concept itself is meaningless. When a change in a paradigm occurs it is usually revolutionary, and overturns a lot of intellectual baggage that has thus far accumulated.


Lovely definition Lintar, couldn't have put it better myself!



B19
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07 Jan 2015, 11:29 pm

Conversely, what a paradigm is not, is a different perspective. A paradigm is overarching in its scope; a perspective is a point of view, such as this 2007 piece from Tony Attwood "positive diagnostic criteria" which he uses to make the point that the perception of something as being pathological is defined by the way it is negatively diagnosed:

(Alternative, Positive) Discovery criteria for Aspergers by Attwood and Gray


A. A qualitative advantage in social interaction, as manifested by a majority of the following:

1. peer relationships characterized by absolute loyalty and impeccable dependability
2. free of sexist, "age-ist", or culturalist biases; ability to regard others at "face value"
3. speaking one’s mind irrespective of social context or adherence to personal beliefs
4. ability to pursue personal theory or perspective despite conflicting evidence
5. seeking an audience or friends capable of: enthusiasm for unique interests and topics;
6. consideration of details; spending time discussing a topic that may not be of primary interest
7. listening without continual judgement or assumption
8. interested primarily in significant contributions to conversation; preferring to avoid ‘ritualistic small talk’ or socially trivial statements and superficial conversation.
9. seeking sincere, positive, genuine friends with an unassuming sense of humour

There is more to that article, though I think the above is sufficient to illustrate the overall point..