Critical Thinking and Autism Spectrum Disorder

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering critical thinking principles, cognitive biases, and concepts related to Autism Spectrum Disorder from Lecture Quiz 1 Part 2.

Psychological Disorder

A condition characterized by disruption in thoughts, emotions, or behaviors, associated with distress and impaired functioning, with responses that are not typical or culturally expected.

Neurodevelopmental Disorder

A biologically brain-based disorder involving differences in brain functioning that originates in childhood and continues throughout adulthood.

Spectrum Disorder

A disorder characterized by a wide variation in the type and severity of symptoms, ranging from high support needs to lower support needs.

Stimming

Physical behaviors done over and over, categorized under restricted interests and repetitive behaviors in Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Neurodivergence

A perspective emphasizing that brains work differently rather than viewing variations as 'right' or 'wrong' compared to a neurotypical brain.

Autism Diagnosis Rates (2000 vs. 2022)

Rates of autism diagnosis increased from $1:150$ people in 2000 to $1:31$ people in 2022.

Masking

Acting in ways considered more socially acceptable, which is particularly common in females with autism and often leads to later diagnosis.

Heritability of Autism

Autism is $70-90\text{\%}$ genetic, with environmental factors potentially turning on genes to allow expression of the disorder.

Cognitive Bias

A systematic error in thinking that occurs when processing and interpreting information as the brain attempts to simplify making sense of the world.

Confirmation Bias

A cognitive bias where a person is more likely to pay attention to information that confirms their original belief and disregard disconfirming information.

Anecdotal Evidence

Giving personal stories more weight than statistical data, often due to emotional appeals and difficulty processing large numbers.

Outlier

An individual experience or statistic that deviates from typical experiences and is unlikely to hold true generally.

Conspiracy Theory

An attempt to explain harmful or tragic events as the result of the actions of a small, powerful group.

Correlation Does Not Equal Causation

The principle that two events occurring together (such as autism symptoms appearing at the same age vaccinations are given) does not mean one causes the other.

Biomedical Treatments (for Autism)

Untested interventions, such as gluten/casein-free diets or chelation, that lack empirical support for treating autism and may carry serious side effects or cause harm.

Chelation

A procedure involving the removal of heavy metals, promoted by some as an unproven biomedical treatment for autism.

Andrew Wakefield

A former doctor who lost his medical license after publishing fraudulent research findings claiming a link between vaccines and autism.