Working in Movement

I hadn't heard the term Asperger's Syndrome until last year, when I read an article about it in the New York Times magazine. After than I began hearing about this "mildly autistic" condition more and more frequently. In Learning and Asperger's I referred to another article and then wondered about social and sensory/motor learning approaches for those exhibiting the symptoms of Asperger's.

A couple more interesting pieces have popped up in the past few days. In The Disability Movement Turns to Brains, Amy Harmon paints a picture of some of the debate surrounding the growing number of observed ways that human brains function a little differently. And NPR's Fresh Air radio program on May 5, 2004 interviewed leading Asperger's expert Fred Volkmar, as well as a very articulate 30-something guy recently diagnosed with Asperger's. (If you want to listen to the program you'll need the Realaudio software.)

The Fresh Air interview focused on Asperger's. The Amy Harmon piece in the New York Times takes a broader view. Rather than focusing exclusively on Asperger's, Harmon takes on the issue of the growing number of diagnoses of symptoms of brains that are organized differently than the "normal" ones (whatever that is.) Asperger's, A.D.D., bipolar, etc. What are some of the implications?

The article starts out talking about a guy recently diagnosed with A.D.D., who is relieved to finally have an explanation for his quirks, things like not finishing most of the products he takes on. His family is not so sure, and wants him to get with the program. The article seems to be asking about whether these sorts of disorders are an excuse for quirky behavior, or do they really signify genuine disability?

But in a new kind of disabilities movement, many of those who deviate from the shrinking subset of neurologically "normal" want tolerance, not just of their diagnoses, but of their behavioral quirks. They say brain differences, like body differences, should be embraced, and argue for an acceptance of "neurodiversity."

How would we know whether quirky behavior is really part of some underlying disability or, well, just quirky behavior? That's kind of a tough call. You can't hook everyone up to a brain imaging machine.

Overcoming the human suspicion of oddity will be hard, the more so because the biological basis of many brain disorders can't be easily verified. Usually, all anyone has to go on is behavior.

In the Fresh Air interview, Volkmar indicated that someday soon scientists will probably be able to isolate the genes associated with Asperger's. And even then, what about those who have some fraction of those genes but not all? It's an interesting research question.

What about the role of learning here? After all, even very compromised human nervous systems still possess enormous capacities for learning and awareness. There may still be many options to be developed and and choices to be made, based on awareness.

Many of those who advocate greater tolerance for brain quirks caution that it should not serve as an excuse for individuals to behave inappropriately. "It's not a get-out-of-jail-free card," Dr. Ratey said. "It's an awareness of what you need to do or accept about yourself and then decide, 'Do I want to fit in more or not?'