The Autism News | English


Put simply, a systemiser is someone who puts things in order. This could be components of an engine, lines of computer code or even cans of soup stacked neatly in a work of art.

Yes, Andy Warhol was a systemiser. Many believe he was also autistic. The repetition seen in Warhol’s celebrated Campbell’s Soup Cans is a trait recognised in those with Asperger’s syndrome, a form of autism.

For psychologist Simon Baron- Cohen, director of the Autism Research Centre at the University of Cambridge, systemising is the need to create systems and the desire to explore how they work.

He says an extreme version of this – hyper-systemising – can be seen in those with autism, alongside an inability to empathise with others.

Typically, systemisers are found in jobs that involve science, engineering, mathematics and technology. He believes these people could be the key to unlocking some of the mysteries around autism.

According to Prof Baron-Cohen, if both parents are in these fields of work, they have more chance of having an autistic child.

‘There are currently several clues that parents who are both strong systemisers might have a higher risk of having a child on the autistic spectrum,’ he told Metro.

So even though they are not autistic themselves, these scientists and IT workers may pass on the autistic traits displayed in their jobs to their children, who could then have the disorder. The theory puts further emphasis on genetics in the bid to identify what exactly causes autism.

It is widely accepted by researchers that a combination of genetics and environment leads to autism, but the root causes remain to be established.

Scientists believe there are hundreds of autism genes.

Autism stems from a disruption in the development of the brain, leading to repetitive behaviour and difficulties in communication and social interaction. These characteristics occur before a child reaches the age of three and last for life.

Asperger’s syndrome is within the autism spectrum but does not lead to the same communication problems – people with Asperger’s are often highly intelligent.

It is estimated that there are more than half a million people with autism in the UK – roughly a ratio of about one in every 100.

Caroline Hattersley, head of information at the National Autistic Society, said the number of people being diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder has grown ‘tremendously’ in the past 20 years.

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