autism

[splange]

I've been browsing over the RD Laing websites and from what I gather, he seemed to believe that mental illness were mostly due to a dysfunctioning family, with the aggressor mother/passive father dynamic at the core rather than any physical malformity.  Does anybody know if his views encompassed autism? And could autism be described as a mental illness?

[mystress]

I am sorry but I could not disagree with this RD Laing(just who is he?) more.

I am Manic Depressive(have been,I now realise,.all my life) My adopted parents were not.

However,my biological Mother & Brother ARE Manic Depressive,so I am afraid that shoots his theories in the foot!

Most authorities believe Manic Depression to be genetic.

I cannot help with you about Autism.

[splange]

Hi Mystress,

RD Laing is a scottish psychoanalyst and although there are issues of an hereditary nature I think he believed that most mentall problems were the result of the family. I am pontificating somewhat as this is just info i have gathered via browsing but there is a book called madness sanity and the family which documents his theories.

[spinchimp]

RD Laings theories were popular (in some quarters) in the 60s and 70s. I don't think they have much support now and I don't believe they have been backed up by research. I read a lot of his stuff as an impressionable and pretensious 15 year old. I was particularly impressed by 'Knots' which was sort of a psycho-poem, but then I read Herman Hesse in those days too!