Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Reference Handbook (Contemporary World Issues)

This handbook provides an overview of the current scientific understanding of autism spectrum disorders, as well as a cultural and historical perspective on the controversies that plague the field.

• Presents diagnostic criteria from the American Psychiatric Association manual

• Contains quotations and excerpts from scientific literature and text from court proceedings related to the Vaccine Injury Program

• Includes a chronology of important events in the field of autism, beginning in 1910 when the word "autism" was first used

• 12 charts, figures, and graphs illustrate autism diagnosis, neuroscience, treatment, prevalence, and cultural factors

• Includes reference bibliographies at the end of each chapter, as well as a chapter of annotated print and nonprint resources related to autism