Keynote Session

Special Interests in Autism: Are they really that different? 

12:15 p.m. BEST Conference Room

Presented by: Steve Kanne, PhD, Professor of Clinical Psychiatry, Cornell Medical College

Special interests are a core diagnostic criterion for autism, yet everyone has passions and interests. This presentation will begin by explaining the role of special interests in autism diagnosis. It will then examine whether and how the special interests of autistic individuals differ from those of others, focusing on variations across age and sex.

About the speaker:
Steve Kanne PhD, ABPP, is Professor of Psychology in Clinical Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College and serves as the Director of the Center for Autism and the Developing Brain. Previously, he was the Executive Director of the MU Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders and a Professor in the Department of Health Psychology at the University of Missouri.

Dr. Kanne earned both his bachelor’s degree and doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Washington University. He completed a clinical internship at the University of California, San Diego, and pursued a post-doctoral fellowship in Pediatric Neuropsychology at the University of Missouri-Columbia. His early career included five years as a pediatric neuropsychologist at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, followed by four years at the University of Missouri focusing on autism and pediatric neuropsychology. He later became Director of the Autism Center at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital before returning to the University of Missouri in 2012 to lead the Thompson Center. In 2020, he transitioned to Weill Cornell.

Dr. Kanne’s research interests center on autism, emphasizing diagnostic tools, behavioral phenotyping, co-occurring symptoms, special interests, subthreshold symptoms, and evidence-based therapies. He has published extensively in these areas, as well as in cognitive neuropsychology, the history of neuropsychology, and pediatric traumatic brain injury. Board-certified in Clinical Neuropsychology, Dr. Kanne is passionate about education and training, frequently delivering national and international workshops on autism.