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Relationship between Autism and Learning Disabilities

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Part of the book series: Current Issues in Autism ((CIAM))

Abstract

Although historically autism and learning disabilities have been independent of one another, changing definitions of these disorders and new conceptions of diagnosis suggest significant overlap (Shea & Mesibov, 1985). Similarities between these groups in learning, attention, communication, and social problems are now recognized, and genetic research (Folstein & Rutter, 1987) has established another connection. In this chapter we explore these similarities by reviewing the history of each diagnostic category and describing overlaps in concepts, learning difficulties, and behaviors.

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© 1995 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Cox, R.D., Mesibov, G.B. (1995). Relationship between Autism and Learning Disabilities. In: Schopler, E., Mesibov, G.B. (eds) Learning and Cognition in Autism. Current Issues in Autism. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-1286-2_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-1286-2_4

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4899-1288-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4899-1286-2

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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