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ABSTRACT: This essay asks and answers the question: Is it possible for children with autism to live a good life, to flourish? The notion of a good life that is used is borrowed from Aristotle. Initially, the answer is no. Left to their own devises, children with autism do not flourish. However, unbeknownst to the public, a significant percentage of children with autism can and do flourish when properly treated with the 'new' science of Applied Behavior Analysis.
KEYWORDS: Good life, ethics, pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PPD-NOS), early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI)
Is it possible for children with autism to live a good life, to flourish? Surprisingly, the answer is yes, given a particular understanding of flourishing. Our project is to explain the conception of flourishing that we have in mind and explain how children with autism may come to flourish.
Instead of constructing an account of a good life from the ground up for this project, Aristotle's conception of a good life, of human flourishing, will be used. Using Aristotle's paradigm of a good life (eudaimonia), the initial prognosis for children with autism flourishing is very poor. But this prognosis is made in the absence of children with autism receiving early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) using the science of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). Hence, an explanation of ABA and EIBI is in order, along with evidence of their efficacy. In this context, the prognosis for children with autism living a good life, of flourishing, is improved.
HUMAN FLOURISHING ACCORDING TO ARISTOTLE AND PREREQUISITE CONDITIONS
According to Aristotle (384-322 bce), what constitutes a good life is an objective matter. Therefore, human flourishing is not synonymous with a state of pleasure, because individuals find pleasure in all manner of different things-possessing riches for some, sexual dalliances for others, and so on (Aristotle 350 bce, 66-9). Instead, for Aristotle, human flourishing requires performing certain sorts of actions-acts that fulfill our function as humans (Aristotle 350 bce, 73). But what exactly is the function of humans according to Aristotle?
That which makes humans uniquely different from non-human animals is our capacity to reason (Aristotle 350 bce, 73). To be rational then is our function as humans for Aristotle. Hence, humans flourish when they are...