Growing numbers of autism diagnoses reflect progress, not crisis

The increase in autism diagnoses reflects improved awareness, inclusive definitions, and a shift towards rights-based support — not an epidemic of over-medicalisation, writes Neil Kenny 

Public figures, including Robert F Kennedy Jr, speak of an 'autism epidemic', often linking rising prevalence to speculative environmental 'causes' and implying that something unnatural or imagined 'toxins' are at work. File picture: AP/Mark Schiefelbein

We are living through a period of large-scale speculation regarding both the meaning and proposed causes of diagnoses such as autism or similar neurodevelopmental conditions. 

In his seminal work The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, philosopher of science Thomas Kuhn suggested that periods of uncertainty within scientific knowledge can lead to a build-up of anomalies that cumulatively spark changes in how we understand the world.