Show news for a region of your choice (mostly Austraian news).

The autistic teenager making video games to show players what Asperger's is really like

By bobb |

Donal Sheil

A young, autistic game developer has showcased his innovative new project at Australia's largest gaming convention, as part of an exhibit putting diversity centre-stage.

Inspired by his experiences living with autism, Bradley Hennessey's experimental game, An Aspie Life allows players to experience life with Asperger's.

In addition to entertainment, Mr Hennessey said the power of video games to enhance empathy with others is undervalued.

"Really, games can do anything," he said.

DAD... a film about autism and fatherhood

By bobb |

Available to watch online now!

DAD... a film about autism and fatherhood is now available to watch online! We're thrilled to share our short documentary with you all! We hope it helps dads (and mums) navigating the world of autism and parenting. Whether you're new to this or have been in it for a while, there are so many powerful messages from these twelve incredible dads that you need to hear. So please watch, share, send us your reviews... and most importantly remember, you are part of a bigger “fraternity of parents who are wonderful”

Bank mistrust runs deep, Autism spectrum applicants plug skills gaps

By bobb |

Four in five Australians believe banks don’t act ethically, the inaugural Deloitte Trust Index – Banking 2018 IPSOS poll (paywall) has found. The poll showed three in four Australians thought banks didn’t keep their promises to customers and found people from different political persuasions, classes and genders all had a similarly dim view of banking ethics.

Autism psychologist ‘once ran New Age cult’

By bobb |

Rick Morton

A Queensland psychologist ­accused of once leading a New Age cult which promised paying clients the ability to “move between ­dimensions” has been working as an approved provider of a federal autism program since 2015.

Natasha Lakaev — who ran courses through a program called Universal Knowledge from a Northern NSW property known as Omaroo in the early 2000s — once claimed to be a “metaphysician” who could heal HIV and other diseases and later retrained as a psychologist.

'Getting in early': WA to trial Australian-first autism program

By bobb |

Autism appears in about one per cent of children but because its rarely spotted before the age of three many don't get the early intervention work that could greatly improve their development down the track.

In an Australian first trial to begin next year a team of WA researchers hope to change that and fill a gap for autism early-intervention services.

The natural science behind applied behaviour analysis

By bobb |

While most likely best-known among the public as a treatment for autism, the field of behaviour analysis has far-reaching beneficial applications. Unfortunately, however, it’s often portrayed in the media in a negative light, focusing on inaccurate stereotypes regarding punishment and control.

So, what exactly does it involve?

Behaviour analysis is a natural science approach to understanding behaviour, learning, language and cognition. As a science, it’s conceptually similar to the disciplines of psychology, biology, chemistry and medical science.