This issue of AJMR features research on autism and intellectual disability. Autism is a developmental disorder of neurobiological origin that is characterized by impairment in social reciprocity; atypical communication; and restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests, and activities. Many people with autism also have significant limitations in both intellectual functioning and adaptive behavior and, therefore, meet the diagnostic criteria for mental retardation. The assumption has been that the neurobiological processes responsible for the cardinal features of autism also affect intellectual and adaptive functioning. Availability of refined diagnostic criteria, more precise diagnostic instruments, and increased research funding has greatly enhanced our understanding of autism and its effect on the functioning of people with intellectual disability.
The four papers included in this special section are representative of current behavioral research efforts in this field of study. Taylor and colleagues, using data from an on-going longitudinal study of families of adolescents...