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How would you describe autism? What does autism mean to you?
How people approach and talk about autism is constantly affected by how they conceptualize autism. For example, it has a significant impact on how they approach research and policy-making as well as how they communicate with autistic individuals in day-to-day life.
There are two major ways to conceptualize autism. The first one is the medical model of disability which views autism as a disorder and encourages autistic people to be “fixed”, “cured”, and “normalized” to be more like non-autistic people (the majority). While the term, neurotypical, is often used in comparison to being autistic/neurodivergent, it implies being autistic/neurodivergent is atypical. Thus, we prefer using the term, predominant neurotype in comparison to being autistic/neurodivergent. This word simply communicates the fact that being autistic/neurodivergent makes you the minority in society without additional negative unhelpful information. Autism was first explained by medical professionals and then by parents of autistic children, using the medical model. Notably, genuine caring thoughts such as those of the parents could lead to the medical model view (i.e., wanting the best for their children and wishing they could do what other non-autistic children could do). However, the medical model has its cons: misunderstanding and mistreating autism (e.g., applied behavioral therapy).
The second way to conceptualize autism is the social model, viewing autism as a difference in how individuals experience the world and encouraging society to make necessary accommodations to adapt to autistic people’s needs. The social model perceives autism as a simple difference, rather than a disorder, and thinks that autistic individuals are “disabled” by society when it does not accommodate their needs. Autism and environments both (not just autism) lead to the consequences (whether positive or negative), which is explained as a golden equation by Luke Beardon (e.g., Beardon, 2017). With the Internet being used from the early 1990s, autistic advocates have led the understanding of autism, resulting in a paradigm shift from the medical model to the social model in society. Yet, this movement largely differs among nations. At the Grace Center for Autism, we see autism from the social model and hope to lend support in the paradigm shift from the medical model to the social model in Japan and worldwide.
Note: we indicate the team at the grace center for autism
Reference: Beardon, L. (2017). Autism and Asperger syndrome in adults. Hachette UK.