Savantism

Savantism – What is it and how does it relate to autism?

The American Psychological Association defines a person with savantism, or a savant, as someone who has an intellectual disability or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), who also demonstrates exceptional, often isolated, cognitive abilities.  Examples include rapid mathematical calculation, identifying the day of the week for any given date in history, or remarkable musical abilities.  The common trait among these abilities is that they are related to an unusually large memory capacity.  Savants are distinguished from prodigies based on their general intellectual ability.  Savants usually excel in one or few specific areas, but do not have high general intelligence, and/or they may find everyday interactions and tasks difficult.  Savantism talents have been coined as “islands of genius” because savants have less intellectual ability in other areas.

Savantism was first described in medical journals in Germany in 1783. The article reported the abilities of patient who could do complex mathematical calculations quickly and accurately.  However, savantism was not first named until 1887 in London when Dr. J. Langdon Down first coined the term “savant.”  Savant roughly translates as “knowledgeable person” as a variant of the French word savoir meaning “to know.”

Savantism is a relatively rare condition; although many surveys suggest that as many as 1 in every 10 autistic people can have savant skills.  It is important to note that not all autistic people are savants, and similarly, not all savants have autism.  Research also suggests that savantism is more common in males than females.  An autistic person can have savantism from birth, or it can be acquired later in life (often following a brain injury or disease).  Savant skills do not fade or disappear, indeed, they appear to develop throughout the savant’s life.  They may evolve from replicating what they see or hear to creating unique content in their particular skillset.

In the past, the question arose whether it was better to treat an autistic savant’s gift as another symptom of their autism or was it better to nurture and train their talent. The modern understanding of savantism is that it is best to train and nurture a savant’s ability.  Through anecdotal experience, we now understand that honing their talent improves outcomes in all areas of the savant’s life.  It can give the savant an opportunity to work with their non-autistic peers, improve their social skills, and give them a sense of purpose in their community.

There are some well-known savants in the media and broader culture that may give you a better illustration of a savant and their talent.  Dr. Temple Grandin is a living example of an autistic savant, and there have been several movies and TV shows made about her life. She is an author and animal behaviorist.  She has described her thought process as “thinking in pictures” and says that she thinks in “photographic-specific images” rather than words, and that words are a second language to her.  Another example of a savant is the character of Raymond in the movie Rain Man.  Raymond has eidetic or photographic memory, can perform complex mathematical calculations and count hundreds of objects at once.  Perhaps one of the most recent media examples of a savant is Dr. Shaun Murphy in the TV series The Good Doctor. He also has an eidetic or photographic memory and has the ability to note minute details or notice small changes.

Article by: JT Exum and The Autism ToolKit

References:

[1] The Savant Syndrome: An Extraordinary Condition. A Synopsis: Past, Present, Future

[2] National Autistic Society: The History of Autism