The book Dibs in Search of Self is a story of a smart yet very unsocial and withdrawn little boy named Dibs. The story, written from Dr. Axline’s point of view, shows how Dibs goes from being completely unable to function in a normal classroom setting with other children to discovering himself through play therapy. Nowhere is the book is Dibs specifically diagnosed or even characterized as being autistic. This is not surprising as autism was not really widely understood or diagnosed until the 1960’s; this book was written in 1964. There are many correlations between this book and some of the theories and topics discussed in Berger’s text. I would like to address some of these correlations now.
Berger says, “Children who developed slowly but were not so withdrawn were diagnosed as being mentally retarded or as having a “pervasive developmental disorder.” Now such children are usually said to have an autistic spectrum disorder, which characterizes about 1 in every 150 8-year-olds (three times as many boys as girls) in the United States (MMWR, February 9, 2007)” (p. 330). Berger’s statement relates to the story of Dibs as Dibs was considered mentally retarded. “There was something about Dibs’ behavior that defied the teachers to categorize him, glibly and routinely, and send him on his way. His behavior was so uneven. At on time, he seemed to be extremely retarded mentally” (Axline, p. 15). Until recently many children now diagnosed with autism were considered to be mentally retarded and insane. But as the disorder has become more understood and prevalent less children are being misdiagnosed or mischaracterized.
Berger also describes some specific signs of autism, which include: delayed language, impaired social skills, unusual play, and difficulty understanding the emotions of others. These signs describe Dibs almost perfectly.
He does not vocalize