Supporting Autistic Individuals to Thrive

Autism research and clinical practice are developing and growing constantly. Nevertheless, the medical model is still the go-to model for most researchers and many clinicians working in the autism domain. And there are many strengths inherent in the medical model.

At the same time, the medical model is deficit-focused, and by and large, it conceptualizes autism as a series of biologically derived functional deficits or deviations from a ‘norm’ or average. This may cover a part of the autism experience; however, it does not seem to capture the whole of autistic experiences accurately. Moreover, it limits us as researchers and clinicians in the questions we ask and the support we offer to and co-create with autistic individuals. Read More