Understanding the Autistic Individual: A Practical Guide to Critical Discourse Analysis

Abstract

In this chapter, Brownlow et al. seek to explore the positioning of individuals with autism within clinical consultation sessions. They draw upon the previous work of Edley (Discourse as data: A guide for analysis. Sage, 2001) in applying the principles of critical discursive psychology to a section of data drawn from a clinical consultation session. In doing this, they use the data to illustrate how the method of analysis works in practice. The chapter explores issues of power, dominant repertoires, positioning, and ideological dilemmas operating within the therapeutic context. Discussion of the strengths and limitations of the method of data analysis are considered, in addition to implications for researchers using the method.