Background: Parental concerns persist that immunization increases the risk of autism spectrum disorder, resulting in the potential for reduced uptake by parents of younger siblings of children with autism spectrum disorder ("younger sibs"). Objective: To compare immunization uptake by parents for their younger child relative to their…

The autistic impairments in emotional and social competence, imagination and generating ideas predict qualitative differences in expressive drawings by children with autism beyond that accounted by any general learning difficulties. In a sample of 60 5-19-year-olds, happy and sad drawings were requested from 15 participants with non-savant autism…

Asperger Syndrome (AS) and autism are two pervasive developmental disorders of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Individuals with AS may have exceptional speech and language abilities and difficulty establishing friendships with peers. The federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) states that all American children have the right to…

The problem of "stages" in the development of artistic ability is addressed by reviewing the cases of a gifted autistic child, Nadia, who drew realistically at a very young age, and of a normal child, Eytan, who rapidly taught himself the principles of isometric perspective and of foreshortening. A review of scholarly opinion about…

This study of the drawings produced by 34 autistic and 33 normal children (age 68-211 months) at the same developmental level found no intergroup differences on fragmentation of geometric design drawings, but significant differences in geometric design overlap and human figure overlap and fragmentation. (JDD)

Describes the drawings of an autistic 8-year-old boy and investigates the role of art in his life considering art's relationship, by style and content, to his emotional and daily experiences. Indicates his four distinct drawing styles along with what these styles suggest about art's narrative qualities and its meaning-making possibilities. (CMK)

Examines the case of Nadia, an autistic child with unusual graphic ability. Considers the development of her skill in relation to hypotheses about drawing, intelligence, and conceptual thought. Illustrations are included. Commentaries on this article by Charles Cleland and Martin Rayala appear on pages 68-72 of this issue. (SJL)

This article explores the graphic development of a five-year-old girl with autism during Saturday morning art classes. It attempts to uncover what particular methods of consideration are useful in the examination of the art of such a child. Drawing systems and early mathematics are found to be of value in discussing Sung's art making since both…

Traces the influence of visionary and perceptual schemas in discussions of child art in psychology, education, and art history. Considers recent accounts of artistic achievements of autistic children and views that young children can draw in perspective. Argues that Luquet has been misinterpreted; he was beginning to define a new theoretical space…

The case study of Nadia, an autistic child, documents the phenomenally accurate drawings she made. Nadia's precocious drawing capacity raises questions about the drawing hypothesis adhered to by F. Goodenough and D. B. Harris and Gestalt theories of perception and representation. The argument is made that Nadia drew realistically because she…

Investigates the drawing and copying skills of nine autistic and eight mentally retarded children matched for mental age. Results indicate a similarity of performance for the drawing tasks and significant differences concerning the copying. Discusses the specific functions performed better by the autistic children and provides illustrative…

Traces the development of artistic ability in a six-year-old boy with autism and mild mental retardation. Addresses questions concerning autism and artistic development including whether intellectual realism is a necessary precursor to visual realism and whether a two-dimensional photographic memory is used as opposed to three-dimensional…

Reviews the work of neurobiologist, David Marr, concerning artistic ability and autism. Summarizes Marr's theory of perceptual vision illuminating the relationships among object, observer, perceptual process, and image. Briefly reviews the cases of four autistic people with extraordinary drawing skills. (MJP)