title: Honduras

text: Since 1975, emigration from Honduras has accelerated as economic migrants and political refugees sought a better life elsewhere. A majority of expatriate Hondurans live in the United States. A 2012 US State Department estimate suggested that between 800,000 and one million Hondurans lived in the United States at that time, nearly 15% of the Honduran population. The large uncertainty about numbers is because numerous Hondurans live in the United States without a visa. In the 2010 census in the United States, 617,392 residents identified as Hondurans, up from 217,569 in 2000.


title: Honduras

text: The ethnic breakdown of Honduran society was 90% Mestizo, 7% American Indian, 2% Black and 1% White (2017). The 1927 Honduran census provides no racial data but in 1930 five classifications were created: white, Indian, Negro, yellow, and mestizo. This system was used in the 1935 and 1940 census. Mestizo was used to describe individuals that did not fit neatly into the categories of white, American Indian, negro or yellow or who are of mixed white-American Indian descent.


title: Honduras

text: John Gillin considers Honduras to be one of thirteen "Mestizo countries" (Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Cuba, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay). He claims that in much as Spanish America little attention is paid to race and race mixture resulting in social status having little reliance on one's physical features. However, in "Mestizo countries" such as Honduras, this is not the case. Social stratification from Spain was able to develop in these countries through colonization.


title: Honduras

text: During colonization the majority of Honduras's indigenous population died of diseases like smallpox and measles resulting in a more homogenous indigenous population compared to other colonies. Nine indigenous and African American groups are recognized by the government in Honduras. The majority of Amerindians in Honduras are Lenca, followed by the Miskito, Cho'rti', Tolupan, Pech and Sumo. Around 50,000 Lenca individuals live in the west and western interior of Honduras while the other small native groups are located throughout the country.


title: Honduras

text: The majority of blacks in Honduran are culturally ladino, meaning they are culturally Latino. Non-ladino groups in Honduras include the Black Carib, Miskito, Arab immigrants and the black population of the Islas de la Bahía The Black Carib population descended from freed slaves from Saint Vincent. The Miskito population (about 10,000 individuals) are the descendants of African and British immigrants and are extremely racially diverse. While the Black Carib and Miskito populations have similar origins, Black Caribs are considered black while Miskitos are considered indigenous. This is largely a reflection of cultural differences, as Black Caribs have retained much of their original African culture. The majority of Arab Hondurans are of Palestinian and Lebanese descent. They are known as "turcos" in Honduras because of migration during the rule of the Ottoman Empire. They have maintained cultural distinctiveness and prospered economically.


title: Honduras

text: The male to female ratio of the Honduran population is 1.01. This ratio stands at 1.05 at birth, 1.04 from 15 to 24 years old, 1.02 from 25 to 54 years old, .88 from 55 to 64 years old, and .77 for those 65 years or older.


title: Honduras

text: The Gender Development Index (GDI) was .942 in 2015 with an HDI of .600 for females and .637 for males. Life expectancy at birth for males is 70.9 and 75.9 for females. Expected years of schooling in Honduras is 10.9 years for males (mean of 6.1) and 11.6 for females (mean of 6.2). These measures do not reveal a large disparity between male and female development levels, however, GNI per capita is vastly different by gender. Males have a GNI per capita of $6,254 while that of females is only $2,680. Honduras's overall GDI is higher than that of other medium HDI nations (.871) but lower than the overall HDI for Latin America and the Caribbean (.981).


title: Honduras

text: The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) ranks Honduras 116th for measures including women's political power, and female access to resources. The Gender Inequality Index (GII) depicts gender-based inequalities in Honduras according to reproductive health, empowerment, and economic activity. Honduras has a GII of .461 and ranked 101 of 159 countries in 2015. 25.8% of Honduras's parliament is female and 33.4% of adult females have a secondary education or higher while only 31.1% of adult males do. Despite this, while male participation in the labor market is 84.4, female participation is 47.2%. Honduras's maternal mortality ratio is 129 and the adolescent birth rate is 65.0 for women ages 15–19.


title: Honduras

text: Familialism and machismo carry a lot of weight within Honduran society. Familialism refers to the idea of individual interests being second to that of the family, most often in relation to dating and marriage, abstinence, and parental approval and supervision of dating. Aggression and proof of masculinity through physical dominance are characteristic of machismo.


title: Honduras

text: Honduras has historically functioned with a patriarchal system like many other Latin American countries. Honduran men claim responsibility for family decisions including reproductive health decisions. Recently Honduras has seen an increase in challenges to this notion as feminist movements and access to global media increases. There has been an increase in educational attainment, labor force participating, urban migration, late-age marriage, and contraceptive use amongst Honduran women.


title: Honduras

text: Between 1971 and 2001 Honduran total fertility rate decreased from 7.4 births to 4.4 births. This is largely attributable to an increase in educational attainment and workforce participation by women, as well as more widespread use of contraceptives. In 1996 50% of women were using at least one type of contraceptive. By 2001 62% were largely due to female sterilization, birth control in the form of a pill, injectable birth control, and IUDs. A study done in 2001 of Honduran men and women reflect conceptualization of reproductive health and decision making in Honduras. 28% of men and 25% of women surveyed believed men were responsible for decisions regarding family size and family planning uses. 21% of men believed men were responsible for both.


title: Honduras

text: Sexual violence against women has proven to be a large issue in Honduras that has caused many to migrate to the U.S. The prevalence of child sexual abuse was 7.8% in Honduras with the majority of reports being from children under the age of 11. Women that experienced sexual abuse as children were found to be twice as likely to be in violent relationships. Femicide is widespread in Honduras. In 2014, 40% of unaccompanied refugee minors were female. Gangs are largely responsible for sexual violence against women as they often use sexual violence. Between 2005 and 2013 according to the UN Special Repporteur on Violence Against Women, violent deaths increased 263.4 percent. Impunity for sexual violence and femicide crimes was 95 percent in 2014. Additionally, many girls are forced into human trafficking and prostitution.


title: Honduras

text: Between 1995 and 1997 Honduras recognized domestic violence as both a public health issue and a punishable offense due to efforts by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). PAHO's subcommittee on Women, Health and Development was used as a guide to develop programs that aid in domestic violence prevention and victim assistance programs However, a study done in 2009 showed that while the policy requires health care providers to report cases of sexual violence, emergency contraception, and victim referral to legal institutions and support groups, very few other regulations exist within the realm of registry, examination and follow-up. Unlike other Central American countries such as El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua, Honduras does not have detailed guidelines requiring service providers to be extensively trained and respect the rights of sexual violence victims. Since the study was done the UNFPA and the Health Secretariat of Honduras have worked to develop and implement improved guidelines for handling cases of sexual violence.


title: Honduras

text: An educational program in Honduras known as "Sistema de Aprendizaje Tutorial" (SAT) has attempted to "undo gender" through focusing on gender equality in everyday interactions. Honduras's SAT program is one of the largest in the world, second only to Colombia's with 6,000 students. It is currently sponsored by "Asociacion Bayan", a Honduran NGO, and the Honduran Ministry of Education. It functions by integrating gender into curriculum topics, linking gender to the ideas of justice and equality, encouraging reflection, dialogue and debate and emphasizing the need for individual and social change. This program was found to increase gender consciousness and a desire for gender equality amongst Honduran women through encouraging discourse surrounding existing gender inequality in the Honduran communities.


title: Honduras

text: Spanish is the official, national language, spoken by virtually all Hondurans. In addition to Spanish, a number of indigenous languages are spoken in some small communities. Other languages spoken by some include Honduran sign language and Bay Islands Creole English.


title: Honduras

text: The Lenca isolate lost all its fluent native speakers in the 20th century but is currently undergoing revival efforts among the members of the ethnic population of about 100,000. The largest immigrant languages are Arabic (42,000), Armenian (1,300), Turkish (900), Yue Chinese (1,000).


title: Honduras

text: Although most Hondurans are nominally Catholic (which would be considered the main religion), membership in the Catholic Church is declining while membership in Protestant churches is increasing. The International Religious Freedom Report, 2008, notes that a CID Gallup poll reported that 51.4% of the population identified themselves as Catholic, 36.2% as evangelical Protestant, 1.3% claiming to be from other religions, including Muslims, Buddhists, Jews, Rastafarians, etc. and 11.1% do not belong to any religion or unresponsive. 8% reported as being either atheistic or agnostic. Customary Catholic church tallies and membership estimates 81% Catholic where the priest (in more than 185 parishes) is required to fill out a pastoral account of the parish each year.


title: Honduras

text: The CIA Factbook lists Honduras as 97% Catholic and 3% Protestant. Commenting on statistical variations everywhere, John Green of Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life notes that: "It isn't that ... numbers are more right than [someone else's] numbers ... but how one conceptualizes the group." Often people attend one church without giving up their "home" church. Many who attend evangelical megachurches in the US, for example, attend more than one church. This shifting and fluidity is common in Brazil where two-fifths of those who were raised evangelical are no longer evangelical and Catholics seem to shift in and out of various churches, often while still remaining Catholic.


title: Honduras

text: Most pollsters suggest an annual poll taken over a number of years would provide the best method of knowing religious demographics and variations in any single country. Still, in Honduras are thriving Anglican, Presbyterian, Methodist, Seventh-day Adventist, Lutheran, Latter-day Saint (Mormon) and Pentecostal churches. There are Protestant seminaries. The Catholic Church, still the only "church" that is recognized, is also thriving in the number of schools, hospitals, and pastoral institutions (including its own medical school) that it operates. Its archbishop, Cardinal Óscar Andrés Rodriguez Maradiaga, is also very popular with the government, other churches, and in his own church. Practitioners of the Buddhist, Jewish, Islamic, Baháʼí, Rastafari and indigenous denominations and religions exist.


title: Honduras

text: About 83.6% of the population are literate and the net primary enrollment rate was 94% in 2004. In 2014, the primary school "completion" rate was 90.7%. Honduras has bilingual (Spanish and English) and even trilingual (Spanish with English, Arabic, or German) schools and numerous universities.


title: Honduras

text: The higher education is governed by the National Autonomous University of Honduras which has centers in the most important cities of Honduras.


title: Honduras

text: Crime in Honduras is rampant and criminals operate with a high degree of impunity. Honduras has one of the highest national murder rates in the world; cities such as San Pedro Sula and the Tegucigalpa likewise have registered homicide rates among the highest in the world. The violence is associated with drug trafficking as Honduras is often a transit point, and with a number of urban gangs, mainly the MS-13 and the 18th Street gang. Homicide violence reached a peak in 2012 with an average of 20 homicides a day. Official statistics from the Honduran Observatory on National Violence show Honduras's homicide rate was 60 per 100,000 in 2015 with the majority of homicide cases unprosecuted. But as recently as 2017, organizations such as InSight Crime's show figures of 42 per 100,000 inhabitants, a 26% drop from 2016 figures.


title: Honduras

text: Highway assaults and carjackings at roadblocks or checkpoints set up by criminals with police uniforms and equipment occur frequently. Although reports of kidnappings of foreigners are not common, families of kidnapping victims often pay ransoms without reporting the crime to police out of fear of retribution, so kidnapping figures may be underreported.


title: Honduras

text: Violence in Honduras increased after Plan Colombia was implemented and after Mexican President Felipe Calderón declared the war against drug trafficking in Mexico. Along with neighboring El Salvador and Guatemala, Honduras forms part of the Northern Triangle of Central America, which has been characterized as one of the most violent regions in the world. As a result of crime and increasing murder rates, the flow of migrants from Honduras to the U.S. also went up. The rise in violence in the region has received international attention.


title: Honduras

text: Owing to measures taken by government and business in 2014 to improve tourist safety, Roatan and the Bay Islands have lower crime rates than the Honduran mainland.


title: Honduras

text: In the less populated region of Gracias a Dios, narcotics-trafficking is rampant and police presence is scarce. Threats against U.S. citizens by drug traffickers and other criminal organizations have resulted in the U.S. Embassy placing restrictions on the travel of U.S. officials through the region.


title: Honduras

text: The most renowned Honduran painter is José Antonio Velásquez. Other important painters include Carlos Garay, and Roque Zelaya. Some of Honduras's most notable writers are Lucila Gamero de Medina, Froylán Turcios, Ramón Amaya Amador and Juan Pablo Suazo Euceda, Marco Antonio Rosa, Roberto Sosa, Eduardo Bähr, Amanda Castro, Javier Abril Espinoza, Teófilo Trejo, and Roberto Quesada.


title: Honduras

text: The José Francisco Saybe theater in San Pedro Sula is home to the Círculo Teatral Sampedrano (Theatrical Circle of San Pedro Sula)


title: Honduras

text: Honduras has experienced a boom from its film industry for the past two decades. Since the premiere of the movie "Anita la cazadora de insectos" in 2001, the level of Honduran productions has increased, many collaborating with countries such as Mexico, Colombia, and the U.S. The most well known Honduran films are "El Xendra", "Amor y Frijoles", and "Cafe con aroma a mi tierra".


title: Honduras

text: Honduran cuisine is a fusion of indigenous Lenca cuisine, Spanish cuisine, Caribbean cuisine and African cuisine. There are also dishes from the Garifuna people. Coconut and coconut milk are featured in both sweet and savory dishes. Regional specialties include fried fish, tamales, carne asada and baleadas.


title: Honduras

text: Other popular dishes include: meat roasted with chismol and carne asada, chicken with rice and corn, and fried fish with pickled onions and jalapeños. Some of the ways seafood and some meats are prepared in coastal areas and in the Bay Islands involve coconut milk.


title: Honduras

text: The soups Hondurans enjoy include bean soup, mondongo soup (tripe soup), seafood soups and beef soups. Generally these soups are served mixed with plantains, yuca, and cabbage, and served with corn tortillas.


title: Honduras

text: Other typical dishes are the montucas or corn tamales, stuffed tortillas, and tamales wrapped in plantain leaves. Honduran typical dishes also include an abundant selection of tropical fruits such as papaya, pineapple, plum, sapote, passion fruit and bananas which are prepared in many ways while they are still green.


title: Honduras

text: At least half of Honduran households have at least one television. Public television has a far smaller role than in most other countries. Honduras's main newspapers are La Prensa, El Heraldo, La Tribuna and Diario Tiempo. The official newspaper is .


title: Honduras

text: Punta is the main music of Honduras, with other sounds such as Caribbean salsa, merengue, reggae, and reggaeton all widely heard, especially in the north, and Mexican rancheras heard in the rural interior of the country. The most well known musicians are Guillermo Anderson and Polache. Banda Blanca is a widely known music group in both Honduras and internationally.


title: Honduras

text: Some of Honduras's national holidays include Honduras Independence Day on 15 September and Children's Day or Día del Niño, which is celebrated in homes, schools and churches on 10 September; on this day, children receive presents and have parties similar to Christmas or birthday celebrations. Some neighborhoods have piñatas on the street. Other holidays are Easter, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Day of the Soldier (3 October to celebrate the birth of Francisco Morazán), Christmas, El Dia de Lempira on 20 July, and New Year's Eve.


title: Honduras

text: Honduras Independence Day festivities start early in the morning with marching bands. Each band wears different colors and features cheerleaders. Fiesta Catracha takes place this same day: typical Honduran foods such as beans, tamales, baleadas, cassava with chicharrón, and tortillas are offered.


title: Honduras

text: On Christmas Eve people reunite with their families and close friends to have dinner, then give out presents at midnight. In some cities fireworks are seen and heard at midnight. On New Year's Eve there is food and "cohetes", fireworks and festivities. Birthdays are also great events, and include piñatas filled with candies and surprises for the children.


title: Honduras

text: La Ceiba Carnival is celebrated in La Ceiba, a city located in the north coast, in the second half of May to celebrate the day of the city's patron saint Saint Isidore. People from all over the world come for one week of festivities. Every night there is a little carnaval (carnavalito) in a neighborhood. On Saturday there is a big parade with floats and displays with people from many countries. This celebration is also accompanied by the Milk Fair, where many Hondurans come to show off their farm products and animals.


title: Honduras

text: The flag of Honduras is composed of three equal horizontal stripes. The blue upper and lower stripes represent the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. The central stripe is white. It contains five blue stars representing the five states of the Central American Union. The middle star represents Honduras, located in the center of the Central American Union.


title: Honduras

text: The coat of arms was established in 1945. It is an equilateral triangle, at the base is a volcano between three castles, over which is a rainbow and the sun shining. The triangle is placed on an area that symbolizes being bathed by both seas. Around all of this an oval containing in golden lettering: "Republic of Honduras, Free, Sovereign and Independent".


title: Honduras

text: The "National Anthem of Honduras" is a result of a contest carried out in 1914 during the presidency of Manuel Bonilla. In the end, it was the poet Augusto Coello that ended up writing the anthem, with German-born Honduran composer Carlos Hartling writing the music. The anthem was officially adopted on 15 November 1915, during the presidency of . The anthem is composed of a choir and seven stroonduran.


title: Honduras

text: The national flower is the famous orchid, "Rhyncholaelia digbyana" (formerly known as "Brassavola digbyana"), which replaced the rose in 1969. The change of the national flower was carried out during the administration of general Oswaldo López Arellano, thinking that "Brassavola digbyana" "is an indigenous plant of Honduras; having this flower exceptional characteristics of beauty, vigor and distinction", as the decree dictates it.


title: Honduras

text: The national tree of Honduras was declared in 1928 to be simply "the Pine that appears symbolically in our Coat of Arms" ("el Pino que figura simbólicamente en nuestro Escudo"), even though pines comprise a genus and not a species, and even though legally there's no specification as for what kind of pine should appear in the coat of arms "either". Because of its commonality in the country, the "Pinus oocarpa" species has become since then the species most strongly associated as the national tree, but legally it is not so. Another species associated as the national tree is the "Pinus caribaea".


title: Honduras

text: The national mammal is the white-tailed deer ("Odocoileus virginianus"), which was adopted as a measure to avoid excessive depredation. It is one of two species of deer that live in Honduras.


title: Honduras

text: The national bird of Honduras is the scarlet macaw ("Ara macao"). This bird was much valued by the pre-Columbian civilizations of Honduras.


title: Honduras

text: Legends and fairy tales are paramount in Honduran culture. Lluvia de Peces (Rain of Fish) is an example of this. The legends of El Cadejo and La Llorona are also popular.


title: Honduras

text: Football is the most popular sport in Honduras. Honduras's first international competition began in 1921 at the Independence Centenary Games featuring neighboring countries in Central America. The highest division of football is The Honduran National Professional Football League (Spanish: "La Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional de Honduras"), which was established in 1964. The league is recognized on a continental level, as C.D. Olimpia–the only Honduran club to win the competition–won the CONCACAF Champions League in 1972 and 1988. The Honduras national football team (Spanish: "Selección de fútbol de Honduras") is considered one of the best nations in North America, as the country last won the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 1981 and placed third in 2013. On a global scale, Honduras has competed in the FIFA World Cup three times in 1982, 2010, and 2014, although "Los Catrachos" have yet to win a game.


title: Honduras

text: Baseball is the second most popular sport in Honduras. Honduras's first international competition began in 1950 in the Baseball World Cup, which was the most prestigious global competition at the time. The country lacks a division in baseball, likely due to the absence of competition in international baseball since 1973. The Honduras national baseball team (Spanish: "Selección de béisbol de Honduras") is shy of being a top ten nation in North and South America due to infrequent scheduling, although competition is consistent and growing at the youth level. Inspiration at the youth level came from Mauricio Dubón being the first born and raised Honduran to start in Major League Baseball, who is currently competing today.


title: Honduras

text: All other sports tend to be minor at best, as Honduras has not won a medal in the Olympics and has not made notable results in other world championships yet. However, Hondurans have consistently entered track & field and swimming games at the Summer Olympics since 1968 and 1984, respectively. Occasionally, Honduras has competed in combat sports ranging from judo to boxing at the Summer Olympics as well. Gender inequality in Honduras is present in the sports industry, as teams like the Honduras women's national football team (Spanish: "Selección de fútbol de Honduras Femenina") has yet to qualify in global and continental tournaments and softball being nearly nonexistent in the country.


title: Necrophilia

text: Necrophilia, also known as necrophilism, necrolagnia, necrocoitus, necrochlesis, and thanatophilia, is sexual attraction towards or a sexual act involving corpses. It is classified as a paraphilia by the World Health Organization (WHO) in its "International Classification of Diseases" (ICD) diagnostic manual, as well as by the American Psychiatric Association in its "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual" (DSM).


title: Necrophilia

text: Various terms for the crime of corpse-violation animate sixteenth- through nineteenth-century works on law and legal medicine. The plural term "nécrophiles" was coined by Belgian physician Joseph Guislain in his lecture series, "Leçons Orales Sur Les Phrénopathies," given around 1850, about the contemporary necrophiliac François Bertrand:


title: Necrophilia

text: In the ancient world, sailors returning corpses to their home country were often accused of necrophilia. Singular accounts of necrophilia in history are sporadic, though written records suggest the practice was present within Ancient Egypt. Herodotus writes in "The Histories" that, to discourage intercourse with a corpse, ancient Egyptians left deceased beautiful women to decay for "three or four days" before giving them to the embalmers. Herodotus also alluded to suggestions that the Greek tyrant Periander had defiled the corpse of his wife, employing a metaphor: "Periander baked his bread in a cold oven." Acts of necrophilia are depicted on ceramics from the Moche culture, which reigned in northern Peru from the first to eighth century CE. A common theme in these artifacts is the masturbation of a male skeleton by a living woman. Hittite law from the 16th century BC through to the 13th century BC explicitly permitted sex with the dead. In what is now Northeast China, the ethnic Xianbei emperor Murong Xi (385–407) of the Later Yan state had intercourse with the corpse of his beloved empress Fu Xunying, after the latter was already cold and put into the coffin.


title: Necrophilia

text: In Renaissance Italy, following the reputed moral collapse brought about by the Black Death and before the Roman Inquisition of the Counter-Reformation, literature was replete with sexual references; these include necrophilia, as in the epic poem "Orlando Innamorato" by Matteo Maria Boiardo, first published in 1483. In a notorious modern example, American serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer was a necrophiliac. Dahmer wanted to create a sex slave who would mindlessly consent to whatever he wanted. When his attempts failed, and his male victim died, he would keep the corpse until it decomposed beyond recognition, masturbating and performing sexual intercourse on the body. He would perform sexual activities before and after murdering his victims. Dahmer explained that he only killed his victims because he did not want them to leave.


title: Necrophilia

text: More modern necrophiliacs include Scottish serial killer Dennis Nilsen, and English David Fuller, who is considered the worst offender of this kind in English legal history.


title: Necrophilia

text: Havelock Ellis, in his 1903 volume of "Studies of the Psychology of Sex", believed that necrophilia was related to algolagnia, in that both involve the transformation of a supposed negative emotion, such as anger, fear, disgust, or grief, into sexual desire.


title: Necrophilia

text: In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5), recurrent, intense sexual interest in corpses can be diagnosed under Other Specified Paraphilic Disorder (necrophilia) when it causes marked distress or impairment in important areas of functioning.


title: Necrophilia

text: Forensic Psychologist Anil Aggrawal introduced a ten tier classification of necrophiliacs based on increasing severity of disorder.


title: Necrophilia

text: Additionally, criminologist Lee Mellor's typology of homicidal necrophiliacs consists of eight categories (A–H) and is based on the combination of two behavioural axes: destructive (offender mutilates the corpse for sexual reasons) – preservative (offender does not), and cold (offender used the corpse sexually two hours or more after death) – warm (offender used the corpse sexually less than two hours after death). This renders four categories (A-D) to which Mellor adds an additional four (E-H):


title: Necrophilia

text: Dabblers have transitory opportunistic sexual relations with corpses, but do not prefer them. Catathymic necrophiliacs commit postmortem sex acts only while in a sudden impulsive state. Exclusive necromutilophiles derive pleasure purely from mutilating the corpse, while sexual cannibals and vampires are sexually aroused by eating human body parts. Category A, C, and F offenders may also cannibalise or drink the blood of their victims.


title: Necrophilia

text: Necrophilia is often assumed to be rare, but no data for its prevalence in the general population exists. Some necrophiliacs only fantasise about the act, without carrying it out. In 1958, Klaf and Brown commented that, although rarely described, necrophiliac fantasies may occur more often than is generally supposed.


title: Necrophilia

text: Rosman and Resnick (1989) reviewed 123 cases of necrophilia. The sample was divided into genuine necrophiliacs, who had a persistent attraction to corpses, and pseudo-necrophiliacs, who acted out of opportunity, sadism, or transient interest. Of the total, 92% were male and 8% were female. 57% of the genuine necrophiliacs had occupational access to corpses, with morgue attendants, hospital orderly, and cemetery employees being the most common jobs. The researchers theorised that either of the following situations could be antecedents to necrophilia:


title: Necrophilia

text: The most common motive for necrophiliacs is the possession of a partner who is unable to resist or reject them. However, in the past, necrophiliacs have expressed having more than one motive.


title: Necrophilia

text: IQ data was limited, but not abnormally low. About half of the sample had a personality disorder, and 11% of true necrophiliacs were psychotic. Rosman and Resnick concluded that their data challenged the conventional view of necrophiliacs as generally psychotic, mentally deficient, or unable to obtain a consenting partner.


title: Necrophilia

text: Necrophilia has been observed in mammals, birds, reptiles and frogs. In 1960, Robert Dickerman described necrophilia in ground squirrels, which he termed "Davian behaviour" in reference to a limerick about a necrophiliac miner named Dave. The label is still used for necrophilia in animals. Certain species of arachnids and insects practice sexual cannibalism, where the female cannibalises her male mate before, during, or after copulation.


title: Necrophilia

text: Kees Moeliker made an observation while he was sitting in his office at the Natural History Museum Rotterdam, when he heard the distinctive thud of a bird hitting the glass facade of the building. Upon inspection, he discovered a drake (male) mallard lying dead outside the building. Next to the downed bird, a second drake mallard was standing close by. As Moeliker observed the couple, the living drake pecked at the corpse of the dead one for a few minutes then mounted the corpse and began copulating with it. The act of necrophilia lasted for about 75 minutes, in which time, according to Moeliker, the living drake took two short breaks before resuming with copulating behaviour. Moeliker surmised that at the time of the collision with the window the two mallards were engaged in a common pattern in duck behaviour called "attempted rape flight". "When one died the other one just went for it and didn't get any negative feedback – well, didn't get any feedback," according to Moeliker. Necrophilia had previously only been reported in heterosexual mallard pairs.


title: Necrophilia

text: In a short paper known as "Sexual Habits of the Adélie Penguin", deemed too shocking for contemporary publication, George Murray Levick described "little hooligan bands" of penguins mating with dead females in the Cape Adare rookery, the largest group of Adélie penguins, in 1911 and 1912. This is nowadays ascribed to lack of experience of young penguins; a dead female, with eyes half-closed, closely resembles a compliant female. A gentoo penguin was observed attempting to have intercourse with a dead penguin in 1921.


title: Necrophilia

text: A male New Zealand sea lion was once observed attempting to copulate with a dead female New Zealand fur seal in the wild. The sea lion nudged the seal repeatedly, then mounted her and made several pelvic thrusts. Approximately ten minutes later, the sea lion became disturbed by the researcher's presence, dragged the corpse of the seal into the water, and swam away while holding it. A male sea otter was observed holding a female sea otter underwater until she drowned before repeatedly copulating with her carcass. Several months later, the same sea otter was again observed copulating with the carcass of a different female. Copulation with a dead female pilot whale by a captive male pilot whale has been observed, and possible sexual behaviour between two male humpback whales, one dead, has also been reported.


title: Necrophilia

text: In 1983, a male rock dove was observed to be copulating with the corpse of a dove that shortly before had its head crushed by a car. In 2001, a researcher laid out sand martin corpses to attract flocks of other sand martins. In each of six trials, 1–5 individuals from flocks of 50–500 were observed attempting to copulate with the dead sand martins. This occurred one to two months after the breeding season; since copulation outside the breeding season is uncommon among birds, the researcher speculated that the lack of resistance by the corpses stimulated the behaviour. Charles Brown observed at least ten cliff swallows attempt to copulate with a road-killed cliff swallow in the space of 15 minutes. He commented, "This isn't the first time I've seen cliff swallows do this; the bright orange rump sticking up seems to be all the stimulus these birds need." Necrophilia has also been reported in the European swallow, grey-backed sparrow-lark, Stark's lark, and the snow goose. A Norwegian television report showed a male hybrid between a black grouse and western capercaillie kill a male black grouse before attempting to copulate with it. In 2015, due to work done by the University of Washington, it was found that crows would commit necrophilia on dead crow corpses in about 4% of encounters with corpses.


title: Necrophilia

text: Necrophilia has been documented in various lizard species, including "Ameiva ameiva", the leopard lizard, and "Holbrookia maculata". There are two reports of necrophilic behaviour in the sleepy lizard ("Tiliqua rugosa"). In one, the partner of a male lizard got caught in fencing wire and died. The male continued to display courtship behaviour towards his partner two days after her death. This lizard's necrophilia was believed to stem from its strong monogamous bond. In one study of black and white tegu lizards, two different males were observed attempting to court and copulate with a single female corpse on two consecutive days. On the first day, the corpse was freshly dead, but by the second day it was bloating and emitting a strong putrid odor. The researcher attributed the behaviour to sex pheromones still acting on the carcass.


title: Necrophilia

text: Male garter snakes often copulate with dead females. One case has been reported in the "Bothrops jararaca" snake with a dead South American rattlesnake. The prairie rattlesnake ("Crotalus viridis") and "Helicops carinicauda" snake have both been seen attempting to mate with decapitated females, presumably attracted by still-active sex pheromones. Male crayfish sometimes copulate with dead crayfish of either sex, and in one observation with a dead crayfish of a different species.


title: Necrophilia

text: In anurans, it has been observed in the foothill yellow-legged frog, the yellow fire-bellied toad, the common frog, the Oregon spotted frog, the common Asian Toad, "Dendropsophus columbianus", and "Rhinella jimi". The film "" shows a male toad copulating with a female toad that had been run over by a car for eight hours. Necrophilic amplexus in frogs may occur because males will mount any pliable object the size of an adult female. If the mounted object is a live frog not appropriate for mating, it will vibrate its body or vocalise a call to be released. Dead frogs cannot do this, so they may be held for hours. The Amazonian frog "Rhinella proboscidea" sometimes practices what has been termed "functional necrophilia": a male grasps the corpse of a dead female and squeezes it until its oocytes are ejected before fertilising them.


title: Necrophilia

text: Treatment for necrophilia is similar to that prescribed for most paraphilias. Besides advocating treatment of the associated psychopathology, there is little known on the treatment of necrophilia. There has not been a sufficient number of necrophiliacs to establish any effective treatments. However, based on the available data, clinicians are suggested to:


title: Necrophilia

text: Serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer (1960–1994) was known to perform oral sex or masturbate, or both, upon the corpses of his victims before dismembering them. In unguarded, taped interviews with his defense attorney, Wendy Patrickus, Jeffrey Dahmer explicitly stated that he had sex with his victims before and after their deaths. He explained that he wanted to remain with the person as long as possible, preserving some of his victims' selected organs, skeletal tissue and bones.


title: Necrophilia

text: Ted Bundy (1946–1989) was an American serial killer who raped and murdered at least 30 young women during the 1970s. He also confessed to participating in necrophilic acts, claiming to have chosen secluded disposal sites for his victims' bodies specifically for post-mortem sexual intercourse.


title: Necrophilia

text: In 1987, Karen Greenlee gave a detailed interview called “The Unrepentant Necrophile"” "for Jim Morton's (edited by Adam Parafrey) book "Apocalypse Culture". In this interview, she stated that she had a preference for younger men and was attracted to the smell of blood and death. She considered necrophilia an addiction. The interview was held in her apartment, which was apparently a small studio filled with books, necrophilic drawings, and satanic adornments. She also had written a confession letter in which she claimed to have abused 20–40 male corpses.


title: Necrophilia

text: Dennis Nilsen (1945–2018) was a Scottish serial killer who had developed an association between death and intimacy, later finding posing as a corpse a source of sexual arousal. In 1978, Nilsen committed his first murder and had intercourse with the victim's corpse, keeping the body for months before disposal. Nilsen was reported to have sexually abused the corpses of various victims until his arrest.


title: Necrophilia

text: Necrophilia is not explicitly mentioned in Australian law; however, under the Crimes Act 1900 – Sect 81C, penalised for misconduct with regard to corpses is any person who:(a) indecently interferes with any dead human body, or


title: Necrophilia

text: (b) improperly interferes with, or offers any indignity to, any dead human body or human remains (whether buried or not), and


title: Necrophilia

text: Although sex with a corpse is not explicitly mentioned, a person who has sex with a corpse may be convicted of a crime under the above Article. The legal asset protected by such Article is not the corpse's objective honour, but the feeling of good memories, respect, and veneration that living people keep about the deceased person: these persons are considered passive subjects of the corpse's violation.


title: Necrophilia

text: Section 297 of the Indian Penal Code entitled "Trespassing on burial places, etc.", states as follows:


title: Necrophilia

text: Whoever, with the intention of wounding the feelings of any person, or of insulting the religion of any person, or with the knowledge that the feelings of any person are likely to be wounded, or that the religion of any person is likely to be insulted thereby,


title: Necrophilia

text: commits any trespass in any place of worship or on any place of sculpture, or any place set apart from the performance of funeral rites or as a depository for the remains of the dead, or offers any indignity to any human corpse, or causes disturbance to any persons assembled for the performance of funeral ceremonies, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.


title: Necrophilia

text: Although sex with a corpse is not explicitly mentioned, a person who has sex with a corpse may be convicted under the above section. Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code can also be invoked.


title: Necrophilia

text: There are no laws which explicitly prohibit sexual acts on corpses. The closest applicable law is the provision in the Revised Penal Code which only criminalizes "defamation to blacken the memory of one who is dead". There were at least efforts to introduce bills criminalizing sexual acts on corpses during the 15th Congress; one by which penalizes sexual acts of males of corpses of women, and another which covers sexual intercourse, anal sex, and oral sex done on corpses. Both proposals penalizes the act with fine and imprisonment.


title: Necrophilia

text: Under Section 150 of the New Zealand Crimes Act 1961, it is an offence for there to be "misconduct in respect to human remains". Subsection (b) elaborates that this applies if someone "improperly or indecently interferes with or offers indignity to any dead human body or human remains, whether buried or not". This statute is therefore applicable to sex with corpses and carries a potential two-year prison sentence, although there is no relevant case law.


title: Necrophilia

text: Section 14 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act, 2007 prohibits the commission of a sexual act with a corpse. Until codified by the act it was a common law offence.


title: Necrophilia

text: Section 16, § 10 of the Swedish Penal Code criminalises necrophilia, but it is not explicitly mentioned. Necrophilia falls under the regulations against abusing a corpse or grave ("Brott mot griftefrid"), which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison. One person has been convicted of necrophilia. He was sentenced to psychiatric care for that and other crimes, including arson.


title: Necrophilia

text: Sexual penetration of a corpse was made illegal under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, carrying a maximum sentence of two years' imprisonment. Prior to 2003, necrophilia was not illegal; however, exposing a naked corpse in public was classed as a public nuisance ("R v. Clark [1883] 15 Cox 171").


title: Necrophilia

text: There is no federal legislation specifically barring sex with a corpse. Multiple states have their own laws:


title: Impostor syndrome

text: Impostor syndrome, also known as impostor phenomenon or impostorism, is a psychological occurrence in which an individual doubts their skills, talents, or accomplishments and has a persistent internalized fear of being exposed as a fraud. Despite external evidence of their competence, those experiencing this phenomenon do not believe they deserve their success or luck. They may incorrectly attribute it to the Matthew effect, or they may think that they are deceiving others because they feel as if they are not as intelligent as they outwardly portray themselves to be. Impostor syndrome can stem from and result in strained personal relationships and can hinder individuals from achieving their full potential in their fields of interest.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: When impostor syndrome was first conceptualized, it was viewed as a phenomenon that was common among high-achieving women. Further research has shown that it affects both men and women, in the collective sense that the proportion affected are more or less equally distributed among the genders. Individuals with impostor syndrome often have corresponding mental health issues, which may be treated with psychological interventions, though the phenomenon is not a formal mental disorder.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: The term "impostor phenomenon" was introduced in an article published in 1978, titled "The Impostor Phenomenon in High Achieving Women: Dynamics and Therapeutic Intervention" by Pauline R. Clance and Suzanne A. Imes. Clance and Imes defined impostor phenomenon as "an internal experience of intellectual phoniness" and initially focused their research on women in higher education and professional industries.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: The researchers surveyed over 100 women, approximately one-third of whom were involved in psychotherapy for reasons besides impostor syndrome and two-thirds of whom they knew from their own lectures and therapy groups. All of the participants had been formally recognized for their professional excellence by colleagues and displayed academic achievement through educational degrees and standardized testing scores. Despite the consistent external validation these women received, they lacked internal acknowledgement of their accomplishments. When asked about their success, some participants attributed it to luck, while some believed that people had overestimated their capabilities. Clance and Imes believed that this mental framework of impostor phenomenon developed from factors such as gender stereotypes, familial problems, cultural norms, and attribution style. They discovered that the women in the study experienced symptoms of "generalized anxiety, lack of self-confidence, depression, and frustration related to inability to meet self-imposed standards of achievement."


title: Impostor syndrome

text: Certain individuals with impostor syndrome may see themselves as less ill (less depressed, less anxious) than their peers or other mentally ill people, citing their lack of severe symptoms as the indication of the absence of or a minor underlying issue. People with this mindset often do not seek help for their issues because they see their problems as not worthy of psychiatric attention.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: Impostor phenomenon is studied as a reaction to particular stimuli and events. It is an experience that occurs in an individual, not a mental disorder. Impostor phenomenon is not recognized in the DSM or ICD, although both of these classification systems recognize low self-esteem and sense of failure as associated symptoms of depression.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: The first scale designated to measure characteristics of impostor phenomenon was designed by Clance in 1985, called the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS). The scale can be used to determine if characteristics of fear are present in the individual, and to what extent. The aspects of fear include: "fear of evaluation, fear of not continuing success and fear of not being as capable as others." Characteristics of impostor syndrome such as an individual's self-esteem and their perspective of how they achieve success are measured by the CIPS. A sample of 1271 engineering college students were studied by Brian F. French, Sarah C. Ullrich-French, and Deborah Follman to examine the psychometric properties of the CIPS. They found that scores of the scales' individual components were not entirely reliable or consistent and suggested that these should not be used to make significant decisions about individuals with the syndrome.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: In her 1985 paper, Clance explained that impostor phenomenon can be distinguished by the following six characteristics, of which an individual who has impostorism must experience at least two:


title: Impostor syndrome

text: It has been estimated that nearly 70% of individuals will experience signs and symptoms of impostor phenomenon at least once in their life. This can be a result of a new academic or professional setting. Research shows that impostor phenomenon is not uncommon for students who enter a new academic environment. Feelings of insecurity can come as a result of an unknown, new environment. This can lead to lower self-confidence and belief in their own abilities.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: Clance and Imes stated in their 1978 article that, based on their clinical experience, impostor phenomenon was less prevalent in men. However, more recent research has mostly found that impostor phenomenon is spread equally among men and women. Research has shown that women commonly face impostor phenomenon in regard to performance. The perception of ability and power is evidenced in out-performing others. For men, impostor phenomenon is often driven by the fear of being unsuccessful, or not good enough.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: Impostor phenomenon can occur in other various settings. Some examples include a new environment, academic settings, in the workplace, social interactions, and relationships (platonic or romantic).


title: Impostor syndrome

text: In relationships, people with impostorism often feel they do not live up to the expectations of their friends or loved ones. It is common for the individual with impostorism to think that they must have somehow tricked others into liking them and wanting to spend time with them. They experience feelings of being unworthy, or of not deserving the beneficial relationships they possess.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: There is empirical evidence that demonstrates the harmful effects of impostor phenomenon in students. Studies have shown that when a student's academic self-concept increases, the symptoms of impostor phenomenon decrease, and vice versa. The worry and emotions the students held, had a direct impact of their performance in the program. Common facets of impostor phenomenon experienced by students include not feeling prepared academically (especially when comparing themselves to classmates), questioning the grounds on which they were accepted into the program, and perceiving that positive recognition, awards, and good grades stemmed from external factors rather than personal ability or intelligence.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: Cokley et al. investigated the impact impostor phenomenon has on students, specifically ethnic minority students. They found that the feelings the students had of being fraudulent resulted in psychological distress. Ethnic minority students often questioned the grounds on which they were accepted into the program. They held the false assumption that they only received their acceptance due to affirmative action—rather than an extraordinary application and qualities they had to offer.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: Tigranyan et al. (2021) examined the way impostor phenomenon relates to psychology doctoral students. The purpose of the study was to investigate the IP's relationship to perfectionistic cognitions, depression, anxiety, achievement motives, self-efficacy, self-compassion, and self-esteem in clinical and counseling psychology doctoral students. Furthermore, this study sought to investigate how IP interferes with academic, practicum, and internship performance of these students and how IP manifests throughout a psychology doctoral program. Included were 84 clinical and counseling psychology doctoral students and they were instructed to respond to an online survey. The data was analyzed using a Pearson's product-moment correlation and a multiple linear regression. Eighty-eight percent of the students in the study reported at least moderate feelings of IP characteristics. This study also found significant positive correlations between the IP and perfectionistic cognitions, depression, anxiety, and self-compassion. This study indicates that clinical faculty and supervisors should take a supportive approach to assist students to help decrease feelings of IP, in hopes of increasing feelings of competence and confidence.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: Research has shown that there is a relationship between impostor phenomenon and the following factors:


title: Impostor syndrome

text: The aspects listed are not mutually exclusive. These components are often found to correlate among individuals with impostor phenomenon. It is incorrect to infer that the correlational relationship between these aspects cause the impostor experience.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: In individuals with impostor phenomenon, feelings of guilt often result in a fear of success. The following are examples of common notions that lead to feelings of guilt and reinforce the phenomenon.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: In their 1978 paper, Clance and Imes proposed a therapeutic approach they used for their participants or clients with impostor phenomenon. This technique includes a group setting where various individuals meet others who are also living with this experience. The researchers explained that group meetings made a significant impact on their participants. They proposed that this impact was a result of the realization that they were not the only ones who experienced these feelings. The participants were required to complete various homework assignments as well. In one assignment, participants recalled all of the people they believed they had fooled or tricked in the past. In another take-home task, individuals wrote down the positive feedback they had received. Later, they would have to recall why they received this feedback and what about it made them perceive it in a negative light. In the group sessions, the researchers also had the participants re-frame common thoughts and ideas about performance. An example would be to change: "I might fail this exam" to "I will do well on this exam".


title: Impostor syndrome

text: The researchers concluded that simply extracting the self-doubt before an event occurs helps eliminate feelings of impostorism. It was recommended that the individuals struggling with this experience seek support from friends and family. Although impostor phenomenon is not a pathological condition, it is a distorted system of belief about oneself that can have a powerful negative impact on an individual's valuation of their own worth. Impostor syndrome is not a recognized psychiatric disorder: It is not featured in the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual nor is it listed as a diagnosis in the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10). Outside the academic literature, impostor syndrome has become widely discussed, especially in the context of achievement in the workplace. Perhaps because it is not an officially recognized clinical diagnosis, despite the large peer review and lay literature, although there has been a qualitative review, there has never been a published systematic review of the literature on impostor syndrome. Thus, clinicians lack evidence on the prevalence, comorbidities, and best practices for diagnosing and treating impostor syndrome.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: Other research on therapeutic approaches for impostorism emphasizes the importance of self-worth. Individuals who live with impostor phenomenon commonly relate self-esteem and self-worth to others. A major aspect of other therapeutic approaches for impostor phenomenon focus on separating the two into completely separate entities.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: In a study in 2013, researcher Queena Hoang proposed that intrinsic motivation can decrease the feelings of being a fraud that are common in impostor phenomenon. Hoang also suggested that implementing a mentor program for new or entering students will minimize students' feelings of self-doubt. Having a mentor who has been in the program will help the new students feel supported. This allows for a much smoother and less overwhelming transition.


title: Impostor syndrome

text: Impostor experience can be addressed with many kinds of psychotherapy. Group psychotherapy is an especially common and effective way of alleviating the impostor experience.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK), since 1922, comprises three constituent provinces and 2 regions: England, Scotland, and Wales (which collectively make up the region of Great Britain), as well as Northern Ireland, a region in its own right. The UK Prime Minister's website has used the phrase "countries within a country" to describe the United Kingdom. Some statistical summaries, such as those for the twelve NUTS 1 regions of the United Kingdom, refer to Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales as "regions". With regard to Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales particularly, the descriptive name one uses "can be controversial, with the choice often revealing one's political preferences".


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: Although the United Kingdom is a unitary sovereign country, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales have gained a degree of autonomy through the process of devolution. The United Kingdom Parliament and British Government deal with all "reserved matters" for Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, but not in general matters that have explicitly been devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly, Scottish Parliament, and the Welsh Senedd. Additionally, devolution in Northern Ireland is conditional on co-operation between the Northern Ireland Executive and the Government of Ireland (see North/South Ministerial Council) and the British Government consults with the Government of Ireland to reach agreement on some non-devolved matters for Northern Ireland (see British–Irish Intergovernmental Conference). England, comprising the majority of the population and area of the United Kingdom, remains fully the responsibility of the United Kingdom Parliament centralised in London.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales are not themselves listed in the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) list of countries. However the ISO list of the subdivisions of the United Kingdom, compiled by British Standards and the United Kingdom's Office for National Statistics, uses "country" to describe England, Scotland, and Wales. Northern Ireland, in contrast, is described as a "province" in the same lists. Each has separate national governing bodies for sports and compete separately in many international sporting competitions, including the Commonwealth Games. Northern Ireland also forms joint All-Island sporting bodies with the Republic of Ireland for some sports, including rugby union.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are dependencies of the Crown and are not part of the UK. Similarly, the British Overseas Territories, remnants of the British Empire, are not part of the UK.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: From 1801, following the Acts of Union, until 1922 the whole island of Ireland was a province within the UK. Ireland was split into two separate jurisdictions in 1921, becoming Southern Ireland and Northern Ireland. Southern Ireland became the Irish Free State and left the United Kingdom in 1922, left the Commonwealth of Nations in 1949 and is now known as the Republic of Ireland or simply Ireland.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The process of devolution within the UK had begun in the late 1990's, however the process itself had been exercised in other territories of the former British Empire. The first to have experience this was Canada in the late 1860's. After having been Confederated, Canada had been granted dominionhood, becoming the first British Dominion. This status of Dominionhood meant that Canada had a representative and responsible government, that largely exercised power and authority in domestic areas of government. The UK had effectively only had absolute jurisprudence to act on Canada's national defence and foreign policy. In respect of this, it can be implied that the devolution in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland is much like the Dominionhood status used in times passed. However, such terms are no longer used in everyday language by the British Government or indeed the British Parliament.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: <nowiki>*</nowiki> Figures for "gross value added" do not include oil and gas revenues generated beyond the UK's territorial waters, in the country's continental shelf region.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The Interpretation Act 1978 provides statutory definitions of the terms "England", "Wales" and the "United Kingdom", but neither that Act nor any other current statute defines "Scotland" or "Northern Ireland". Use of the first three terms in other legislation is interpreted following the definitions in the 1978 Act. The definitions in the 1978 Act are listed below:


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: In the Scotland Act 1998 there is no delineation of Scotland, with the definition in section 126 simply providing that Scotland includes "so much of the internal waters and territorial sea of the United Kingdom as are adjacent to Scotland".


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011 refers to England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as ""parts"" of the United Kingdom in the following clause: "Each constituency shall be wholly in one of the four parts of the United Kingdom (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland)."


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The Royal Fine Art Commission's 1847 report on decorating the Palace of Westminster referred to "the nationality of the component parts of the United Kingdom" being represented by their four respective patron saints.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: For the purposes of NUTS 1 collection of statistical data in a format that is compatible with similar data collected in the European Union, the United Kingdom was divided into twelve regions of approximately equal size. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland were regions in their own right while England was divided into nine regions.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The official term rest of the UK (RUK or rUK) is used in Scotland, for example in export statistics and in legislating for student funding.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The alternative term "Home Nations" is sometimes used in sporting contexts and may include all of the island of Ireland.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: According to the British Social Attitudes Survey, there are broadly two interpretations of British identity, with ethnic and civic dimensions:


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: Of the two perspectives of British identity, the civic definition has become the dominant idea and in this capacity, Britishness is sometimes considered an institutional or overarching state identity. This has been used to explain why first-, second- and third-generation immigrants are more likely to describe themselves as British, rather than English, Northern Irish, Scottish or Welsh, because it is an "institutional, inclusive" identity, that can be acquired through naturalisation and British nationality law; the vast majority of people in the United Kingdom who are from an ethnic minority feel British. However, this attitude is more common in England than in Scotland or Wales; "white English people perceived themselves as English first and as British second, and most people from ethnic minority backgrounds perceived themselves as British, but none identified as English, a label they associated exclusively with white people". Contrariwise, in Scotland and Wales "there was a much stronger


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: Studies and surveys have reported that the majority of the Scots and Welsh see themselves as both Scottish/Welsh and British though with some differences in emphasis. The Commission for Racial Equality found that with respect to notions of nationality in Britain, "the most basic, objective and uncontroversial conception of the British people is one that includes the English, the Scots and the Welsh". However, "English participants tended to think of themselves as indistinguishably English or British, while both Scottish and Welsh participants identified themselves much more readily as Scottish or Welsh than as British". Some people opted "to combine both identities" as "they felt Scottish or Welsh, but held a British passport and were therefore British", whereas others saw themselves as exclusively Scottish or exclusively Welsh and "felt quite divorced from the British, whom they saw as the English". Commentators have described this latter phenomenon as "nationalism", a rejection of British identity because some Scots and Welsh interpret it as "cultural imperialism imposed" upon the United Kingdom by "English ruling elites", or else a response to a historical misappropriation of equating the word "English" with "British", which has "brought about a desire among Scots, Welsh and Irish to learn more about their heritage and distinguish themselves from the broader British identity". The propensity for nationalistic feeling varies greatly across the UK, and can rise and fall over time.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The 2011 census which asked about national identity found that responders in Great Britain predominantly chose English, Welsh and Scottish rather than British. Other research suggests that most people in England, Wales and Scotland tend to see themselves as British but that in Wales and Scotland in particular Scottish and Welshness tends to receive more emphasis. A poll of 1039 Scottish adults conducted by YouGov in August 2016 found that 28% of responders saw themselves as Scottish not British, 28% as more Scottish than British, 29% as Scottish and British whilst 10% described being British as their dominate identity (either more British than Scottish or British not Scottish). A similar poll conducted in Wales during spring 2019 found that 21% saw themselves as Welsh not British, 27% as more Welsh than British, 44% as equally Welsh and British whilst 7% saw themselves as either more or exclusively British. A 2018 survey of 20,000 adults in England found that 80% identified strongly as English and 82% identified strongly as British with the two identities appearing to be closely intertwined.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The state-funded Northern Ireland Life and Times Survey, part of a joint project between the University of Ulster and Queen's University Belfast, has addressed the issue of identity in since it started polling in 1998. It reported that 37% of people identified as British, whilst 29% identified as Irish and 24% identified as Northern Irish. 3% opted to identify themselves as Ulster, whereas 7% stated 'other'. Of the two main religious groups, 68% of Protestants identified as British as did 6% of Catholics; 60% of Catholics identified as Irish as did 3% of Protestants. 21% of Protestants and 26% of Catholics identified as Northern Irish.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: For Northern Ireland, however, the results of the Life & Times Survey are not the whole story. The poll asks for a single preference, whereas many people easily identify as any combination of British and Irish, or British, Northern Irish and Irish, or Irish and Northern Irish. The 2014 Life & Times Survey addressed this to an extent by choosing two of the options from the identity question: British and Irish. It found that, while 28% of respondents stated they felt "British "not" Irish" and 26% felt "Irish "not" British", 39% of respondents felt some combination of both identities. Six percent chose 'other description'.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The identity question is confounded further by identity with politics and religion, and particularly by a stance on the constitutional status of Northern Ireland. Again in 2014, the Life & Times Survey asked what respondents felt should be the "long term future for Northern Ireland". 66% of respondents felt the future should be as a part of the UK, with or without devolved government. 17% felt that Northern Ireland should unify with the Republic of Ireland. 50% of specifically Roman Catholics considered that the long-term future should be as part of the UK, with 32% opting for separation. 87% of respondents identifying as any Protestant denomination opted for remaining part of the UK, with only 4% opting for separation. Of those respondents who declared no religion, 62% opted for remaining part of the UK, with 9% opting for separation.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: Following devolution and the significant broadening of autonomous governance throughout the UK in the late 1990s, debate has taken place across the United Kingdom on the relative value of full independence, an option that was rejected by the Scottish people in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: Cornwall is administered as a county of England, but the Cornish people are a recognised national minority, included under the terms of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities in 2014. Within Cornwall, 13.8 per cent of the population associated themselves with a Cornish identity, either on its own or combined with other identities, according to the 2011 census. This data, however, was recorded without an available tick box for Cornish, as a result the percentage of the population within Cornwall associating with Cornish identity is likely higher.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: Each of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales has separate national governing bodies for sports and competes separately in many international sporting competitions. Each country of the United Kingdom has a national football team, and competes as a separate national team in the various disciplines in the Commonwealth Games. At the Olympic Games, the United Kingdom is represented by the Great Britain and Northern Ireland team, although athletes from Northern Ireland can choose to join the Republic of Ireland's Olympic team. In addition to Northern Ireland having its own national governing bodies for some sports such as Association football and Netball, for others, such as rugby union and cricket, Northern Ireland participates with the Republic of Ireland in a joint All-Ireland team. England and Wales field a joint cricket team.


title: Countries of the United Kingdom

text: The United Kingdom participates in the Eurovision Song Contest as a single entity, though there have been calls for separate Scottish and Welsh entrants. In 2017, Wales participated alone in the spin-off "Choir of the Year".


title: Autism spectrum

text: The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulties in social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication, and the presence of repetitive behavior and restricted interests. Other common signs include unusual responses to sensory stimuli.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Autism is generally understood as a "spectrum disorder", which means that it can manifest differently in each person: any given autistic individual is likely to show some, but not all, of the characteristics associated with it, and the person may exhibit them to varying degrees. Some autistic people remain nonspeaking over the course of their lifespan, while others have relatively unimpaired spoken language. There is large variation in the level of support people require, and the same person may present differently at varying times. Historically, autism was divided into sub-categories, but there were persistent questions over the validity of these divisions, and the most recent editions of the main diagnostic manuals list ASD as a single disorder.


title: Autism spectrum

text: While psychiatry traditionally classifies autism as a neurodevelopmental disorder, many autistic people, most autistic advocates and a rapidly increasing number of researchers see autism as part of neurodiversity, the natural diversity in human thinking, and experience, with strengths, differences, and weaknesses. On this view, promoted by the autism rights movement, autism is not pathological, but this does not preclude autistic individuals from being disabled or having high support needs. This relatively positive and holistic view of autism has led to a certain degree of friction between autistic individuals, advocates, charities, researchers and practitioners.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Scientists are still trying to determine what causes autism; it is highly heritable and believed to be mainly genetic, but there are many genes involved, and environmental factors may also be relevant. It is unclear why autism frequently co-occurs with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, epilepsy, intellectual disability, amongst other conditions. There are ongoing disagreements about what should be included as part of the autism diagnosis, whether meaningful sub-types of autism exist, and the significance of autism-associated traits in the wider population. The combination of broader criteria and increased awareness has led to a trend of steadily increasing estimates of autism prevalence, causing a common misconception that there is an autism epidemic and perpetuating the controversial myth that it is caused by vaccines. Although there is no cure for autism, early behavioral interventions can help them gain self-care, social, and language skills. However, independent living is unlikely in those with high support needs, so intervention for these individuals require finding and learning alternative modes of communication.


title: Autism spectrum

text: It is now known that autism is a highly variable neurodevelopmental disorder which is generally thought to cover a broad and deep spectrum, manifesting very differently from one individual to another. Some have high support needs, may be non-speaking, and experience developmental delays; this is more likely with other co-existing diagnoses. Other individuals have relatively low support needs; they may have more typical speech-language and intellectual skills but atypical social/conversation skills, narrowly focused interests, and wordy, pedantic communication. They may still require significant support in some areas of their lives. The spectrum model should not be understood as a continuum running from mild to severe, but instead means that autism can present very differently in each individual. How a person presents can depend on context, and may vary over time.


title: Autism spectrum

text: The World Health Organization's International Classification of Diseases (11th Revision) ICD-11, regarded as the global standard, was released in June 2018 and came into full effect as of January 2022. It describes ASD as follows:


title: Autism spectrum

text: ICD-11 was produced by professionals from 55 countries out of the 90 countries involved and is the most widely used reference worldwide. Clinicians use the ICD as a reference for diagnosis and reporting but researchers, particularly in the US, continue to use the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" (DSM-5-TR from 2022, DSM-5 from 2013, or their predecessors) as some material is not included in the ICD (the ICD is broader in scope, covering general as well as mental health). There remain differences, for example Rett syndrome was included in ASD in the DSM-5 but in the ICD-11 it was excluded and placed in the chapter for Developmental Anomalies. Both the ICD and the DSM have been under revision and there has been collaborative work towards a convergence of the two since 1980 (when DSM-3 was published and ICD-9 was current), including more rigorous biological assessment - in place of historical experience - and a simplification of the system of classification.


title: Autism spectrum

text: The American Psychiatric Association's "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, Text Revision" (DSM-5-TR), released in 2022, is the current version of the DSM. The fifth edition, DSM-5, released in May 2013, was the first to define ASD as a single diagnosis, which is continued in DSM-5-TR. ASD encompasses previous diagnoses which included Asperger syndrome, childhood disintegrative disorder, PDD-NOS, and the range of diagnoses which included the word "autism". Rather than distinguishing between these diagnoses, the DSM-5 and DSM-5-TR adopt a dimensional approach to diagnosing disorders that fall underneath the autism spectrum umbrella in one diagnostic category. Within this category, the DSM-5 and the DSM includes a framework that differentiates each individual by dimensions of symptom severity, as well as by associated features (i.e., the presence of other disorders or factors which likely contribute to the symptoms, other neurodevelopmental or mental disorders, intellectual disability, or language impairment). The symptom domains are social communication and restricted, repetitive behaviors, with the option of a separate severity - the negative impact of the symptoms on the individual - being specified for each domain, rather than an overall severity. Prior to the DSM-5, the DSM separated social deficits and communication deficits into two domains. Further, the DSM-5 changed to an onset age in the early developmental period, with a note that symptoms may manifest later when social demands exceed capabilities, rather than the previous, more restricted 3 years of age. These changes continue in the DSM-5-TR.


title: Autism spectrum

text: For many autistic individuals, characteristics usually first appear during infancy or childhood and generally follow a steady course without remission (different developmental timelines described in more detail below). Autistic people may be severely impaired in some respects but average, or even superior, in others.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Some autistic people can exhibit notable ability, for example in mathematics, music or artistic reproduction, which in exceptional cases is usually referred to as savant syndrome. More generally, autistic people tend to show a 'spiky skills profile', with strong abilities in some areas contrasting with much weaker abilities in others.


title: Autism spectrum

text: There are two possible developmental courses of ASD. One course of development is more gradual in nature, with symptoms appearing fairly early in life and persisting. A second course of development is characterized by normal or near-normal development before onset of regression or loss of skills, which is known as regressive autism.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Most parents report that the onset of autism features appear within the first or second year of life. This course of development is fairly gradual, in that parents typically report concerns in development over the first two years of life and diagnosis can be made around 3–4 years of age. Overt features gradually begin after the age of six months, become established by age two or three years, and tend to continue through adulthood, although often in more muted form. Some of the early signs of ASDs in this course include decreased attention at faces, failure to obviously respond when name is called, failure to show interests by showing or pointing, and delayed imaginative play.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Regressive autism occurs when a child appears to develop typically but then starts to lose speech and social skills and is subsequently diagnosed with ASD. Other terms used to describe regression in children with autism are "autism with regression", "autistic regression", "setback-type autism", and "acquired autistic syndrome".


title: Autism spectrum

text: Within the regressive autism developmental course, there are two patterns. The first pattern is when developmental losses occur in the first 15 months to 3 years. The second pattern, childhood disintegrative disorder (a diagnosis now included under ASD), is characterized by regression after normal development in the first 3 to 4, or even up to 9 years of life.


title: Autism spectrum

text: After the regression, the child follows the standard pattern of autistic neurological development. The term "regressive autism" refers to the appearance that neurological development has reversed; it is actually only the affected developmental skills, rather than the neurology as a whole, that regresses.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Usually, the apparent onset of regressive autism can be surprising and distressing to parents, who often initially suspect severe hearing loss. Attribution of regression to environmental stress factors may result in a delay in diagnosis.


title: Autism spectrum

text: There is no standard definition for regression. Some children show a mixture of features, with some early delays and some later losses; and there is evidence of a continuous spectrum of behaviors, rather than, or in addition to, a black-and-white distinction, between autism with and without regression. There are several intermediate types of development, which do not neatly fit into either the traditional early onset or the regressive categories, including mixtures of early deficits, failures to progress, subtle diminishment, and obvious losses.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Regression may occur in a variety of domains, including communication, social, cognitive, and self-help skills; however, the most common regression is loss of language. Some children lose social development instead of language; some lose both. Skill loss may be quite rapid, or may be slow and preceded by a lengthy period of no skill progression; the loss may be accompanied by reduced social play or increased irritability. The temporarily acquired skills typically amount to a few words of spoken language, and may include some rudimentary social perception.


title: Autism spectrum

text: The prevalence of regression varies depending on the definition used. If regression is defined strictly to require loss of language, it is less common; if defined more broadly, to include cases where language is preserved but social interaction is diminished, it is more common. Although regressive autism is often thought to be a less common (compared with gradual course of autism onset described above), this remains an area of ongoing debate; some evidence suggests that a pattern of regressive autism may be more common than previously thought. There are some who believe that regressive autism is simply early-onset autism which was recognized at a later date. Researchers have conducted studies to determine whether regressive autism is a distinct subset of ASD, but the results of these studies have contradicted one another.


title: Autism spectrum

text: There continues to be a debate over the differential outcomes based on these two developmental courses. Some studies suggest that regression is associated with poorer outcomes and others report no differences between those with early gradual onset and those who experience a regression period. While there is conflicting evidence surrounding language outcomes in autism, some studies have shown that cognitive and language abilities at age may help predict language proficiency and production after age 5. Overall, the literature stresses the importance of early intervention in achieving positive longitudinal outcomes.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Impairments in social skills present many challenges for autistic individuals. Deficits in social skills may lead to problems with friendships, romantic relationships, daily living, and vocational success. One study that examined the outcomes of autistic adults found that, compared to the general population, autistic people were less likely to be married, but it is unclear whether this outcome was due to deficits in social skills or intellectual impairment, or some other reason. A factor to this is likely discrimination against autistic people which is perpetuated by myths; for example: the myth that autistic people have no empathy.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Prior to 2013, deficits in social function and communication were considered two separate symptom domains of autism. The current social communication domain criteria for autism diagnosis require individuals to have deficits across three social skills: social-emotional reciprocity, nonverbal communication, and developing and sustaining relationships.


title: Autism spectrum

text: A range of social-emotional reciprocity difficulties (an individual's ability to naturally engage in social interactions) may be present. Autistic individuals may lack mutual sharing of interests, for example many autistic children prefer not to play or interact with others. They may lack awareness or understanding of other people's thoughts or feelings – a child may get too close to peers (entering their personal space) without noticing that this makes them uncomfortable. They may also engage in atypical behaviors to gain attention, for example a child may push a peer to gain attention before starting a conversation.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Older children and adults with ASD perform worse on tests of face and emotion recognition than non-autistic individuals, although this may be partly due to a lower ability to define a person's own emotions.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Autistic people experience deficits in their ability to develop, maintain, and understand relationships, as well as difficulties adjusting behavior to fit social contexts. ASD presents with impairments in pragmatic communication skills, such as difficulty initiating a conversation or failure to consider the interests of the listener to sustain a conversation. The ability to be focused exclusively on one topic in communication is known as monotropism, and can be compared to "tunnel vision". It is common for autistic individuals to communicate strong interest in a specific topic, speaking in lesson-like monologues about their passion instead of enabling reciprocal communication with whomever they are speaking to. What may look like self-involvement or indifference toward others stems from a struggle to recognize or remember that other people have their own personalities, perspectives, and interests. Another difference in pragmatic communication skills is that autistic people may not recognize the need to control the volume of their voice in different social settings – for example, they may speak loudly in libraries or movie theaters.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Autistic people display atypical nonverbal behaviors or have difficulties with nonverbal communication. They may make infrequent eye contact – an autistic child may not make eye contact when called by name, or they may avoid making eye contact with an observer. Aversion of gaze can also be seen in anxiety disorders, however poor eye contact in autistic children is not due to shyness or anxiety; rather, it is overall diminished in quantity. Autistic individuals may struggle with both production and understanding of facial expressions. They often do not know how to recognize emotions from others' facial expressions, or they may not respond with the appropriate facial expressions. They may have trouble recognizing subtle expressions of emotion and identifying what various emotions mean for the conversation. A defining feature is that autistic people have social impairments and often lack the intuition about others that many people take for granted. Temple Grandin, an autistic woman involved in autism activism, described her inability to understand the social communication of neurotypicals, or people with typical neural development, as leaving her feeling "like an anthropologist on Mars". They may also not pick up on body language or social cues such as eye contact and facial expressions if they provide more information than the person can process at that time. They struggle with understanding the context and subtext of conversational or printed situations, and have trouble forming resulting conclusions about the content. This also results in a lack of social awareness and atypical language expression. How facial expressions differ between those on the autism spectrum and neurotypical individuals is not clear. Further, at least half of autistic children have unusual prosody.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Autistic people may also experience difficulties with verbal communication. Differences in communication may be present from the first year of life, and may include delayed onset of babbling, unusual gestures, diminished responsiveness, and vocal patterns that are not synchronized with the caregiver. In the second and third years, autistic children have less frequent and less diverse babbling, consonants, words, and word combinations; their gestures are less often integrated with words. Autistic children are less likely to make requests or share experiences, and are more likely to simply repeat others' words (echolalia). Joint attention seems to be necessary for functional speech, and deficits in joint attention seem to distinguish infants with ASD. For example, they may look at a pointing hand instead of the object to which the hand is pointing, and they consistently fail to point at objects in order to comment on or share an experience. Autistic children may have difficulty with imaginative play and with developing symbols into language. Some autistic linguistic behaviors include repetitive or rigid language, and restricted interests in conversation. For example, a child might repeat words or insist on always talking about the same subject. Echolalia may also be present in autistic individuals, for example by responding to a question by repeating the inquiry instead of answering. Language impairment is also common in autistic children, but is not part of a diagnosis. Many autistic children develop language skills at an uneven pace where they easily acquire some aspects of communication, while never fully developing others, such as in some cases of hyperlexia. In some cases, individuals remain completely nonverbal throughout their lives. The CDC estimated that around 40% of autistic children don't speak at all, although the accompanying levels of literacy and nonverbal communication skills vary.


title: Autism spectrum

text: ASD includes a wide variety of characteristics. Some of these include behavioral characteristics which widely range from slow development of social and learning skills to difficulties creating connections with other people. Autistic individuals may experience these challenges with forming connections due to anxiety or depression, which they are more likely to experience, and as a result isolate themselves.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Other behavioral characteristics include abnormal responses to sensations (such as sights, sounds, touch, taste and smell) and problems keeping a consistent speech rhythm. The latter problem influences an individual's social skills, leading to potential problems in how they are understood by communication partners. Behavioral characteristics displayed by autistic people typically influence development, language, and social competence. Behavioral characteristics of autistic people can be observed as perceptual disturbances, disturbances of development rate, relating, speech and language, and motility.


title: Autism spectrum

text: The second core symptom of autism spectrum is a pattern of restricted and repetitive behaviors, activities, and interests. In order to be diagnosed with ASD under DSM-5 or DSM-5-TR, a person must have at least two of the following behaviors:


title: Autism spectrum

text: Autistic individuals can display many forms of repetitive or restricted behavior, which the Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised (RBS-R) categorizes as follows.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Self-injurious behaviors (SIB) are relatively common in autistic people, and can include head-banging, self-cutting, self-biting, and hair-pulling. Some of these behaviors can result in serious injury or death. Following are theories about the cause of self-injurious behavior in children


title: Autism spectrum

text: Autistic individuals may have symptoms that do not contribute to the official diagnosis, but that can affect the individual or the family. Some individuals with ASD show unusual abilities, ranging from splinter skills (such as the memorization of trivia) to the rare talents of autistic savants. One study describes how some individuals with ASD show superior skills in perception and attention, relative to the general population. Sensory abnormalities are found in over 90% of autistic people, and are considered core features by some. Differences between the previously recognized disorders under the autism spectrum are greater for under-responsivity (for example, walking into things) than for over-responsivity (for example, distress from loud noises) or for sensation seeking (for example, rhythmic movements). An estimated 60–80% of autistic people have motor signs that include poor muscle tone, poor motor planning, and toe walking; deficits in motor coordination are pervasive across ASD and are greater in autism proper. Unusual eating behavior occurs in about three-quarters of children with ASD, to the extent that it was formerly a diagnostic indicator. Selectivity is the most common problem, although eating rituals and food refusal also occur.


title: Autism spectrum

text: There is tentative evidence that gender dysphoria occurs more frequently in autistic people (see Autism and LGBT identities). As well as that, a 2021 anonymized online survey of 16–90 year-olds revealed that autistic males are more likely to identify as bisexual, while autistic females are more likely to identify as homosexual.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Gastrointestinal problems are one of the most commonly co-occurring medical conditions in autistic people. These are linked to greater social impairment, irritability, language impairments, mood changes, and behavior and sleep problems.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Parents of children with ASD have higher levels of stress. Siblings of children with ASD report greater admiration and less conflict with the affected sibling than siblings of unaffected children and were similar to siblings of children with Down syndrome in these aspects of the sibling relationship. However, they reported lower levels of closeness and intimacy than siblings of children with Down syndrome; siblings of individuals with ASD have greater risk of negative well-being and poorer sibling relationships as adults.


title: Autism spectrum

text: It had mostly long been presumed that there is a common cause at the genetic, cognitive, and neural levels for the social and non-social components of ASD's symptoms, described as a triad in the classic autism criteria. However, there is increasing suspicion that autism is instead a complex disorder whose core aspects have distinct causes that often co-occur. While it is unlikely that a single cause for ASD exists, many risk factors identified in the research literature may contribute to ASD development. These risk factors include genetics, prenatal and perinatal factors (meaning factors during pregnancy or very early infancy), neuroanatomical abnormalities, and environmental factors. It is possible to identify general factors, but much more difficult to pinpoint specific factors. Given the current state of knowledge, prediction can only be of a global nature and therefore requires the use of general markers.


title: Autism spectrum

text: Research into causes has been hampered by the inability to identify biologically meaningful subgroups within the autistic population and by the traditional boundaries between the disciplines of psychiatry, psychology, neurology and pediatrics. Newer technologies such as fMRI and diffusion tensor imaging can help identify biologically relevant phenotypes (observable traits) that can be viewed on brain scans, to help further neurogenetic studies of autism; one example is lowered activity in the fusiform face area of the brain, which is associated with impaired perception of people versus objects. It has been proposed to classify autism using genetics as well as behavior. (For more, see Brett Abrahams)


title: Autism spectrum

text: Autism has a strong genetic basis, although the genetics of autism are complex and it is unclear whether ASD is explained more by rare mutations with major effects, or by rare multi-gene interactions of common genetic variants. Complexity arises due to interactions among multiple genes, the environment, and epigenetic factors which do not change DNA sequencing but are heritable and influence gene expression. Many genes have been associated with autism through sequencing the genomes of affected individuals and their parents. However, most of the mutations that increase autism risk have not been identified. Typically, autism cannot be traced to a Mendelian (single-gene) mutation or to a single chromosome abnormality, and none of the genetic syndromes associated with ASD have been shown to selectively cause ASD. Numerous candidate genes have been located, with only small effects attributable to any particular gene. Most loci individually explain less than 1% of cases of autism.