The study is gathering awareness on autism and the possible variations that may derive from this disease.
Many researches have been made in an attempt to understand the behavior of people suffering from autism and the needs that they are generally associated with their affection. Recently, it has been established that autistic traits are responsible for creative thinking, new study concludes after interviewing a large group of Internet users.
Dr. Catherine Best from UK’s University of Stirling, the co-author of the study, started her scientific quest from the premise that there is no exact boundary between healthy individuals and those suffering from autistic disturbances. As a consequence, she set out to find out whether healthy people could also suffer from unidentified autistic traits, which prevented them from understanding abstract concepts.
For the purpose of her study, Catherine has gathered 312 participants, who were asked to provide possible replacements for a brick and a paper clip. Surprisingly, many of the individuals that used to be considered healthy presented autistic traits.
Participants with autistic traits were the ones that were much more creative than the rest of the respondents. The answers they have provided have been completely unusual, leading scientists into concluding that there might be a silver lining for autism, after all.
Scientists think their new study contributes to a better reputation for patients who suffer from this disease. Autistic people have a unique perspective of objects and concepts, which prevents them from interacting with other human beings. However, the new study shows that autistic patients can find distinctive solutions due to their creativity.
Pro bono organizations have always fought to support this idea, namely, that having an autistic child or relative is not necessarily something to be ashamed of. Catherine Best thinks the new study helps prove that there can be a lot of variations among both autistic and non-autistic individuals. She believes many of the myths that have been created in relation to the disease could be dismantled if more efforts are made in this direction.
Meanwhile, autism groups have rallied to protest against the causes that some organizations like Autism Speak support. In their opinion, their rights have not been properly represented by the aforementioned organization, which sustains that they are raising money to offer support to patients and their families. Yet, very few people have actually benefitted from the raised funds, according to patients’ declarations.
Image source: www.autismcommunitystore.com
John Birks
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