I want to take the opportunity today to thank the many Neurodiversity visitors that I have received on this blog site since it began 15 months ago. Neurodiversity is a very loose and somewhat fractured group or persons, largely internet commentators, who are opposed to efforts to cure or treat autism. And they have often criticized me specifically and other parent autism advocates seeking to help their autistic children.
Even within Neurodiversity groups there is a significant divide between those ND members who acknowledge that autism is in fact a disability that restricts to one extent or another the lives of persons with autism and those who feel that autism is just another natural, in some ways superior, variation of the human condition. There are arguments over whether it is appropriate to use expressions like "persons with autism" as opposed to "autistic persons". Some argue that it is inappropriate to refer to autistic persons by common sense expression like "low functioning" or "severely autistic". It is not clear how they would have us distinguish between people like my 11 year old son who has limited communication ability and limited understanding of everyday realities - and dangers - and those autistic persons, some self diagnosed, or diagnosed as adults, who write complex internet essays, testify before government bodies and court proceedings. But then their focus lies not with helping less fortunate autistic persons achieve positive gains in intellect, communication, knowledge, writing or understanding.
To the contrary, what unites all members of the "Neurodiversity" movement is their opposition to attempts to treat or cure OTHER autistic persons, including autistic children. I have capitalized OTHER for a reason. No one is forcing adult autistic persons to undergo treatment. What unites the ND ideologues is their determined opposition to any realistic effort to help other peoples' autistic children. They can dress it up any way the want but the truth is that ND ideologues oppose ABA for autistic children; other peoples' children. ABA is an evidence based intervention demonstrated by the quantity and quality of evidence over five decades of research to be effective in helping autistic children make substantial, sustained gains in IQ, language, academic performance, and adaptive behavior as well as some measures of social behavior, and their outcomes have been significantly better than those of children in control groups.
(Italicized Portion from American Academy of Pedatrics; Management of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders, 2007)
What unites the ND group is their opposition to the only method demonstrated to produce substantial, sustained gains in IQ, language, academic performance, adaptive behavior and some measures of social behavior for autistic children. This is what ABA has been documented by decades of research to offer autistic children . This is what ND icons like Michelle Dawson and Laurent Mottron opposed before the Supreme Court of Canada and the Canadian Senate. And what would these good citizens have parents do instead of helping their autistic children realize these gains through ABA? They want us to wait another generation, literally, to see how further studies turn out comparing ABA to other interventions with little or no evidence basis of efficacy.
So WHY do I thank ND ideologues for visiting my blog site? Because when they do, when they write their "Harold Doherty says" and "Harold Doherty believes" etc. comments on their web sites they actually encourage their followers to visit this site. And if even ONE Neurodiversity believing parent visits this site, comes to learn what ABA can do for their autistic child, and is able to realize these gains for their child, then it will all be worth it. For that reason I would like to thank Michelle Dawson, Estee Klar-Wolfond, "Joseph", "Steve D", Kev Leitch and Mike Stanton. Contrary to your best efforts you might have actually helped some parents realize the truth about ABA and the benefits it can offer their children.
autism
Even within Neurodiversity groups there is a significant divide between those ND members who acknowledge that autism is in fact a disability that restricts to one extent or another the lives of persons with autism and those who feel that autism is just another natural, in some ways superior, variation of the human condition. There are arguments over whether it is appropriate to use expressions like "persons with autism" as opposed to "autistic persons". Some argue that it is inappropriate to refer to autistic persons by common sense expression like "low functioning" or "severely autistic". It is not clear how they would have us distinguish between people like my 11 year old son who has limited communication ability and limited understanding of everyday realities - and dangers - and those autistic persons, some self diagnosed, or diagnosed as adults, who write complex internet essays, testify before government bodies and court proceedings. But then their focus lies not with helping less fortunate autistic persons achieve positive gains in intellect, communication, knowledge, writing or understanding.
To the contrary, what unites all members of the "Neurodiversity" movement is their opposition to attempts to treat or cure OTHER autistic persons, including autistic children. I have capitalized OTHER for a reason. No one is forcing adult autistic persons to undergo treatment. What unites the ND ideologues is their determined opposition to any realistic effort to help other peoples' autistic children. They can dress it up any way the want but the truth is that ND ideologues oppose ABA for autistic children; other peoples' children. ABA is an evidence based intervention demonstrated by the quantity and quality of evidence over five decades of research to be effective in helping autistic children make substantial, sustained gains in IQ, language, academic performance, and adaptive behavior as well as some measures of social behavior, and their outcomes have been significantly better than those of children in control groups.
(Italicized Portion from American Academy of Pedatrics; Management of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders, 2007)
What unites the ND group is their opposition to the only method demonstrated to produce substantial, sustained gains in IQ, language, academic performance, adaptive behavior and some measures of social behavior for autistic children. This is what ABA has been documented by decades of research to offer autistic children . This is what ND icons like Michelle Dawson and Laurent Mottron opposed before the Supreme Court of Canada and the Canadian Senate. And what would these good citizens have parents do instead of helping their autistic children realize these gains through ABA? They want us to wait another generation, literally, to see how further studies turn out comparing ABA to other interventions with little or no evidence basis of efficacy.
So WHY do I thank ND ideologues for visiting my blog site? Because when they do, when they write their "Harold Doherty says" and "Harold Doherty believes" etc. comments on their web sites they actually encourage their followers to visit this site. And if even ONE Neurodiversity believing parent visits this site, comes to learn what ABA can do for their autistic child, and is able to realize these gains for their child, then it will all be worth it. For that reason I would like to thank Michelle Dawson, Estee Klar-Wolfond, "Joseph", "Steve D", Kev Leitch and Mike Stanton. Contrary to your best efforts you might have actually helped some parents realize the truth about ABA and the benefits it can offer their children.
autism
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