Vladimir Putin, the current president of Russia, is no stranger to controversy. From his foreign policies in nearby countries to his treatment of political dissidents, Putin has angered and stunned many across the globe, and according to one organization, his actions may be indicative of a genuine mental health issue—Asperger’s syndrome.
In 2008 and 2011, the Office of Net Assessment, a Pentagon think tank responsible for developing long-term strategies for the US military, released a reports arguing that the behaviors and bodily movements of the Russian president indicate that he “carries a neurological abnormality,” specifically, an autistic disorder similar to Asperger’s.
While the ONA reports cite evidence for their assessment, the diagnosis is not as clear cut as many people may think it is.
What is Asperger’s?
Asperger’s syndrome was a condition characterized as developmental disorder that left patients with difficulties in certain social interactions. These difficulties included things like a lack of empathy, an inability to detect nonverbal communication, problems making eye contact, and intensely specific interests.
However, the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), the authoritative reference for classifying mental health disorders, eliminated Asperger’s as a diagnosis with its publication in 2013. Now the condition and other similar ones have been replaced with the “autism spectrum,” which ranks the severity of a patient’s symptoms in areas like cognitive ability and social interaction.
Therefore, in some sense, Asperger’s is a condition that no longer technically exists. However, this does not mean that the symptoms associated with Asperger’s have disappeared, only that they have been reclassified.
The Evidence of Putin’s Asperger’s
The researchers responsible for the ONA’s report based their claims on the analysis of Putin’s body movements in videos. In patients with Asperger’s, these movements will not always line up with the emotions that a person is trying to convey. According to Brenda Connors, an expert in the field of “movement pattern analysis,” the movements of the Russian president indicate that he suffers from this phenomenon.
The Problems with Putin’s Diagnosis
Unfortunately, video evidence is simply not enough to confirm a diagnosis of Asperger’s (or autism spectrum disorder under the DSM-5). An official diagnosis requires screenings by both a general physician and autism specialist and a number of comprehensive tests. Clips of Putin cannot replace an in-person assessment.
Secondly, the evidence put forth by the ONA research team is inconclusive at best. Difficulties conveying the right messages with body language are simply one aspect of Asperger’s and related disorders. Without the presence of other social impairments, there’s no way to determine if autism is actually causing the problems. For example, other conditions, such as brain damage from a stroke, can create similar symptoms. Unless Putin underwent a brain scan and other forms of testing, there is simply no way to definitively know what is causing his sometimes-peculiar behavior.
The Implications of the Report
In general, reports like these do more harm than good. By focusing in on only one aspect of Asperger’s, the researchers perpetuate the myth that any and all social awkwardness stems from a mental condition. When this occurs, misdiagnosis is likely. That means those who genuinely have the condition will face more challenges in obtaining medical treatment, while those who don’t must live with the stress of a disorder that they don’t actually have.
Finally, inflammatory statements like these, especially coming from the Pentagon, only serve to heighten the tensions that have existed between the United States and Russia since the beginning of the Cold War.
