Abstract: Background: Rates of autism are higher among people with intellectual disabilities (ID) than they are in the general population. Individuals with autism and ID are thought to be at greater risk for mental health problems than those with ID alone. Aims: (1) to review the evidence for different rates of psychopathology in people with ID, with and without autism, and (2) to explore mental distress in people with autism from two different perspectives—(a) Outside-In: essentially behaviours and symptoms as described in DSM/ICD and (b) Inside-Out: personal narratives of those with autism. Findings: Prevalence studies are mostly inconsistent and inconclusive as to whether the addition of autism to ID results in greater psychiatric psychopathology; the need for robust methodology on several dimensions was identified. Outside-In and Inside-Out perspectives revealed that behaviours sometimes considered ‘pathological’ may be coping strategies to manage autism-specific differences in neurobiology and psychological functioning (e.g. hypersensitivities). Such differences are mostly unrecognised in mental health research in autism; greater recognition of these differences may offer more comprehensive understanding of aetiology, treatment and prevention of mental distress in people with autism and ID.
Publication Year: 2013
Publication Date: 2013-08-17
Language: en
Type: book-chapter
Indexed In: ['crossref']
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Cited By Count: 23
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