Interdisciplinary research field led by autistic people
Critical autism studies (CAS) is an interdisciplinary research field within
autism studies led by autistic people.[1][2][3]
There are multiple competing definitions with the narrower one as skeptical of the validity and value of autism as a
medical diagnosis. A broader definition of CAS encompasses "exploring power relationships that construct autism; enabling narratives that challenge the dominant negative medical autism discourses; and creation of theoretical and methodological approaches that are emancipatory and value the highly individual nature of autism and its nascent culture".[4]