Excerpt: ‘Multiple Autisms’

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Excerpt: ‘Multiple Autisms’






April 6, 2017
• Atlanta, GA








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Multiple Autisms: Spectrums of Advocacy and Genomic Science by Jennifer S. Singh(University of Minnesota Press, 2016)

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Excerpt from Multiple Autisms: Spectrums of Advocacy and Genomic Science

Jennifer S. Singh

Multiple Ways of Viewing Autism

I think in the end, at the end of the day . . . genetic factors will probably account for most of autism. So the working model that we have now is that there are multiple genetic variants involved in autism. . . . Some cases there might be an environmental component to it, too. . . . I’m sticking with genetics right now. But it’s going to be in the majority cases complex combinations of genes that are contributing to it, and there seems to be a lot of genes involved.■ Molecular geneticist

My biggest motivation for participating in a genetic research study was just the idea of being part of something that could ultimately help us better understand this disorder, for us and for everybody else. You know, this is a great mystery. . . . I mean we’re getting little signs but we still don’t know.■ Parent of a child diagnosed with autism

People are improperly addressing autism by thinking of whether it is a question of genetics or not. I don’t see why it would really make a practical difference. In terms of what actually happens if it is genetic or something else, you know, some people have it, some people don’t. Some people are in between. You deal with them based on who they are, not how they got to be that way.■ Adult with autism



This book investigates the social, cultural, and political factors contributing to the production, meanings, and use of genetic and genomic knowledges of autism since the late twentieth century.

The introduction’s epigraphs ...

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