Deborah Fein

Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor Emeritus
University of Connecticut

Deborah Fein is Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Department of Psychological Sciences and the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Connecticut in Storrs.

From this contributor

Spectrum

By Deborah Fein, David Amaral, Einat Waizbard-Bartov

25 January 2024

8 min read

An illustration of a magnifying glass, checklists, and anonymous figures.

‘Prototypical autism’ research is likely a dead end

Efforts to define “frank” or “classic” forms of the condition build on several assumptions that the science has not yet borne out.

Spectrum

‘Prototypical autism’ research is likely a dead end

By Deborah Fein, David Amaral, Einat Waizbard-Bartov

25 January 2024 | 8 min read

Spectrum

By Deborah Fein

9 October 2023

5 min read

A group of elementary school children run toward the entrance of a school, their backs turned to the camera.

Journal club: Why do some children lose their autism diagnosis?

More than one-third of a cohort of autistic toddlers no longer meet criteria for the condition at school age, according to a new study, but the findings may not generalize because the cohort is predominantly white and affluent.

Spectrum

Journal club: Why do some children lose their autism diagnosis?

By Deborah Fein

9 October 2023 | 5 min read

Spectrum

By Deborah Fein, Diana Robins

29 April 2014

6 min read

Screening toddlers for autism is worthwhile

A Norwegian study published in February suggested that the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers fails to detect many cases of autism at 18 months of age. The creators of the test explain why there’s more to the story.

Spectrum

Screening toddlers for autism is worthwhile

By Deborah Fein, Diana Robins

29 April 2014 | 6 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Spectrum

By Holly Barker

8 July 2026

5 min read

Research image of proliferating neural cells.

Diverse autism genes derail common developmental pathways

Multiple genetic mouse models initially show delayed cortical development, but the animals’ molecular trajectories diverge within weeks after birth, a new study finds.

Spectrum

Diverse autism genes derail common developmental pathways

Multiple genetic mouse models initially show delayed cortical development, but the animals’ molecular trajectories diverge within weeks after birth, a new study finds.

By Holly Barker

8 July 2026 | 5 min read

Sex differences

By Lauren Schenkman

8 July 2026

5 min read