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Autism
Also written: Autism, Autistic, Autism spectrum disorder
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At a glance
Source-by-source
“Some people with autism prefer being referred to as "autistic" … Refer to someone as having autistic spectrum disorder only if the information is relevant to the story and if you are confident there is a medical diagnosis. Ask individuals how they prefer to be described.”
NCDJ — the chapter's anchor — treats the identity-first/people-first choice as one the individual settles: many prefer "autistic" or "an autistic person," others prefer "a person with autism." It notes the 2013 DSM-5 folded subtypes like Asperger's into the single autism spectrum disorder diagnosis, points to the Autistic Self Advocacy Network's identity-first guidance, and advises naming a diagnosis only when relevant and confirmed.
“Autism spectrum disorder is a group of complex neurological conditions related to brain development. … ask people how they would like to be described. Some might want to be described as autistic, while others might rather be described as a person with autism, or neuroatypical.”
GCJT defines autism as a group of neurological conditions related to brain development and, citing NCDJ, advises naming it only with a formal diagnosis and relevance to the story. The teaching is to ask each person how they want to be described — autistic, a person with autism, or neuroatypical.
“For example, some people prefer to identify as "an autistic person" rather than someone "with autism" because their autism is foundational to their sense of self. In all cases, ask people how they want to be identified, and remember that no community speaks with one voice.”
Sierra Club is the source that reaches autism from the general direction: it invokes autism to illustrate a broad people-first-versus-identity-first rule rather than as a disability-specific entry, which is why its takeaway is the meta-caution that "no community speaks with one voice" — a warning against applying any single naming convention across a group.
“In some cases, as with the Deaf community and autistic community, it is appropriate to use the preferred identity-first language of the community until you can learn an individual's preference. …”
APA names the autistic community, alongside the Deaf community, as a case where it is appropriate to default to identity-first language until an individual's own preference is known. It frames identity-first language as an expression of cultural pride and reclamation, with the individual's stated preference superseding matters of style.
“Some people with autism prefer being referred to as an autistic person; others object to using autistic as an adjective. … Ask individuals how they prefer to be described. If in doubt, use people-first language, referring to someone as a person with autism spectrum disorder rather than an autistic person.”
DSG records the same split — some prefer "an autistic person," others object to "autistic" as an adjective — and directs writers to ask, defaulting to people-first language only when in doubt. Like NCDJ, it notes the 2013 DSM-5 consolidated subtypes such as Asperger's into the single autism spectrum disorder diagnosis.
Synthesis
“Autism” / “autism spectrum disorder” is the term to use, and this is one of the clearest cases where identity-first language (“autistic person”) is often preferred. The five sources agree on the central instruction, ask the individual, and on the fact that opinions vary. NCDJ and the Diversity Style Guide both note that many autistic people prefer “autistic” as an identity over “person with autism,” because the identity-first construction reflects how they understand themselves, while others object to “autistic” as an adjective. Sierra Club uses autism as its worked example of identity-first language and stresses that no community speaks with one voice. GCJT supplies the clinical frame, ASD as “a group of complex neurological conditions,” and NCDJ notes that the Autistic Self Advocacy Network recommends dropping “Asperger’s,” folded into ASD in 2013, in favor of “autism.”
Where the guides part ways is the fallback when no preference is stated. APA names the autistic community (alongside the Deaf community) as a case where it is “appropriate to use the preferred identity-first language of the community until you can learn an individual’s preference,” that is, default to “autistic.” The Diversity Style Guide takes the opposite default: “if in doubt, use people-first language.” So the page carries two settled points and one real divergence. Settled: “autism spectrum disorder” is the current clinical umbrella, “Asperger’s” is no longer a separate diagnosis, and you should ask whenever you can. The divergence: absent a stated preference, APA leans identity-first while DSG leans people-first. Either way, autism is a counterexample to a blanket person-first rule; the broader version of the same shift lives on disabled. Pairs with disability and ableism.
Audience notes
- Journalists and editors. Ask. Many autistic people prefer identity-first “autistic”; use “autism spectrum disorder” for the clinical term and drop “Asperger’s.”
- Advocates and internal comms. Don’t impose person-first “person with autism” as a default — for much of the community it’s the opposite of the respectful choice. Guides split on the fallback (APA leans identity-first, DSG leans people-first), so asking is the reliable rule.
Related terms