Simon Baron-Cohen

Sir Simon Philip Baron-Cohen (born 15 August 1958) is a British clinical psychologist and professor of developmental psychopathology at the University of Cambridge. He is the director of the university's Autism Research Centre and a Fellow of Trinity College. Baron-Cohen has worked in autism research for over 40 years, starting in 1982. In 1985, Baron-Cohen formulated the mindblindness theory of autism, the evidence for which he collated and published in 1995. In 1997, he formulated the prenatal sex steroid theory of autism, the key test of which was published in 2015. In 2003, Baron-Cohen formulated the empathising-systemising (E-S) theory of autism and typical sex differences, the key test of which was published in 2018. Baron-Cohen has also made major contributions to both basic and applied research in autism, and to the field of synaesthesia. He was knighted in the 2021 New Year Honours for services to people with autism. In 2023, Baron-Cohen was awarded the Medical Research Council (MRC) Millennium Medal. He is the 2026 recipient of the Grawemeyer Award in Psychology.