Wittgenstein and the developmental psychopathology of autism

My aims in this paper are twofold: firstly, to explore the relevance of Wittgenstein's thinking for characterizing the early development of interpersonal understanding and social cognition among typically developing children; and secondly, to illustrate how his writings offer a conceptual framework within which we might fashion an account of the developmental psychopathology of autism. Wittgenstein gave prominence to the significance of perceiving emotion in people's bodily expressions, and stressed how our relations towards others contribute to (and reflect) our understanding of the nature of persons-with-minds. In addition, he made telling observations about the relation between first- and third-person aspects of social experience and mental state ascription. The developmental psychopathology of childhood autism attests to the importance of Wittgenstein's ideas. Through autism, we can trace some of the causes and consequences of a relative failure to participate in a 'form of life' that people hold in common with one another. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.