10 Facts About Marian Sigman

Marian Diamond Sigman was a developmental and child clinical psychologist known for her research on autism spectrum disorder.

Marian Sigman was named Outstanding Research Mentor at the Department of Psychiatry of UCLA in 2000 in recognition of her positive impact on the lives and careers of her graduate students.

Marian Sigman was past-president of the International Society for Autism Research and a Charter Fellow of the Society.

Marian Sigman was co-author with Lisa Capps of the 1997 book Children with Autism: A Developmental Perspective.

Marian Sigman attended graduate school at Boston University where she obtained her PhD in Clinical Psychology.

David Sigman was hired as faculty member in Biological Chemistry at UCLA and Marian Sigman secured a postdoctoral research position.

Marian Sigman became a member of the faculty in Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences in 1977 and remained at UCLA until her retirement in 2009.

Over her career, Marian Sigman obtained more than 30 million dollars in grant monies including prestigious program project and center grants from the National Institutes of Health Collaborative Program of Excellence in Autism and Studies to Advance Autism Research and Treatment.

Marian Sigman's research focused on biological and environmental contributors to social communicative deficits and skills in autism.

Marian Sigman created one of the first well-articulated developmental programs of autism research that uncovered characteristics now considered to be core deficits of autism, including difficulties in social orienting, social communication, and joint attention.