Autism is a nuerological disorder caused by abnormalities in the brain. Researchers have discovered that the parts of the brain that process emotions don't develop normally in autistic peeople. Further research has shown that some of the long-distance circuits that connect different regions in the brian may also fail to connect. The autism spectrum is very broad and ranges from severe autism, where the child never learns to speak, to mild Asperger syndrome, where the child had no obvious speech delay (Grandin, 2006).   

Facts:        

• Developmental disabilities such as autism are brain-based, nuerological conditions that have more to do with biology than psychology.
   
• Autism is the most common member of a family called autism spectrum disorders (ASDs).
   
• Autism is usually diagnosed by the time a child is 3 years old.
   
• Autism is found in every country, every ethnic group, and every socioeconomic class.
   
• Autism effects as many as one and hallf million people in the United Staes alone (2006), with 24,000 children bein diagnosed every year. This figure is comprable to other Western countries.
   
• Autism is diagnosed four times as often in boys than in girls.
   
• One in 150 children are being diagnosed with autism in the United States. That figure has skyrocketed in the last 30 years (Shore and Rastelli, 2006).