Was He, or Was He Not? And Why Would It Matter? On Adam Smith Possibly Having Been Afflicted by Autism (Asperger’s Syndrome)

Abstract

I investigate the conjecture (proposed by his namesake Vernon L. Smith) that Adam Smith was afflicted by Asperger’s Syndrome, a form of high-functioning autism. I summarize the evidence confirming this conjecture. Concluding that on balance there is considerable evidence supporting Smith’s Conjecture, I then ponder why it might have mattered had he not been afflicted.