What is Asperger's Syndrome?
Asperger's Syndrome: What is it?
Question
What are general characteristics of Asperger's Syndrome? Answer
Asperger's syndrome is a neurological difference which includes impairment of social interaction such as knowing 'what to say' in a given situation, nonverbal language impairments such as lack of eye contact and lack of understanding of jokes, naivety like not knowing if someone is saying what is true vs. what is not true. People with asperger's syndrome usually take information literally and Abstract thought is very hard for them to grasp. Individuals with Asperger's syndrome find it difficult every day to function without outside support. Even if they obtain a college degree, they may find that having a regular job may be difficult to keep, and find relationships hard to maintain.
There is no cure for Asperger's Syndrome, but with much support, individuals will find life satisfying and worthwhile.
Symptoms
Symptoms include difficulty with social relationships, limited and often eccentric interests, difficulty adapting to change, and difficulty with non-verbal communication such as gesture, eye contact, and turn-taking in conversation.
Often, individuals diagnosed with Asperger disorder do not show symptoms in their first few years of life. They may seem shy or aloof, and sometimes appear hyperactive. Sometimes they seem anxious as young children. By school age, they often seem "different" and have difficulty making friends or fitting in. They could have learning disabilities, but may be good students, and can even be gifted. This makes them quite different from children with classic autism who usually have severe learning problems.
Some of the common characteristics of Asperger disorder include:
- Lack of empathy. They do not seem to take the other person's feelings into account. They may appear rude or insensitive, or selfish.
- Naivete. While they may seem rude, they are often unaware of how this affects other people. They are more likely to be teased or picked on.
- Odd way of talking, odd body posture. Many individuals with Asperger disorder will talk in a monotone, robotic way, or may use a "sing-song" tone of voice that does not vary with the meaning of what they say. They may walk or stand in unusual ways.
- Clumsiness. This often goes along with Asperger disorder but it is not specific.
- Poor nonverbal skills. This may go along with clumsiness. In Asperger disorder, individuals often have good vocabulary and grammar knowledge, but do poorly with mechanical skills, puzzles, or "visualizing" things.
- Poor eye contact. Individuals with Asperger disorder frequently have to be prompted to look at people. This seems different from shyness. Shy individuals use their eye contact appropriately when they do use it. People with Asperger disorder seem unaware of how to use eye contact. It as if they "forget" to look at someone when they are talking to them.
- Restricted or eccentric interests. These interests are usually more complex than those of children with autism, but still would be considered odd for a child, or excessive. For example, they may be interested in unusual collections. They may have only a few topics of conversation. While they may be "experts" on these topics, they are not interested in what the other person has to say, or may be very repetitive in the way they talk about their interests.
- Unusual responses to sensations. The term "sensory integration disorder" is confusing to most people. What we can observe is that some individuals act like they respond differently to noise, touch, texture, movement, light, and smell. They may be unusually bothered by certain textures of clothing, may get upset if served the "wrong" brand of food, or may cover their ears because of some noises but not others.
- Impairment or handicap. Symptoms of Asperger disorder have to be severe enough to cause significant impairment in every day life. Simple examples would include having to attend a special education class, inability to participate in community activities without extra support, serious problems with behavior (such as disruptive or aggressive behavior), or serious impact on family life.
- Pragmatic language impairment. This could include difficulty with eye contact, greeting, holding conversations, adjusting what you see based on different situations, or even recognizing what situation you are in (formal, informal, casual, intimate).
- Semantic impairment. The term "semantics" has to do with the meaning of language, which is often different from the "literal" meaning of words. Typical problems include not getting jokes, taking speech literally (not understanding figures of speech), or insistence on following literal rules.
How common is Asperger Disorder?
Asperger disorder is more common than Autism, and it may affect as many as 1 out of every 200 individuals. It seems to affect males more often than females. Asperger disorder is probably underdiagnosed in girls because they are less like to be disruptive. It is often not diagnosed until age 8 or older. It is a lifelong problem though most individuals with Asperger disorder are self-supporting and they can be successful in careers. It may run in families.
Individuals with Asperger disorder often need accomodations in school and are eligible for help under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Eligibility may be due to an associated learning problem, or under the category "Otherwise Health Impaired." In some states, they are eligible under a language-impaired category because of their pragmatic language difficulties.
They usually want to make and keep friends, but need adult support to be successful. They seem to be more vulnerable to emotional difficulties.
Treatment
Typical behavior modification methods used for children with emotional disturbances are often ineffective for children with Asperger disorder. Whenever possible, they should be educated in mainstream settings with additional supports as needed. The Functional Behavior Assessment approach is usually effective at finding the cause of challenging behavior. Social skills training can be helpful, but many children and adults with Asperger Disorder need ongoing social support.
By the age of 18, many individuals will have been treated with some kind of medication for related behavior or emotional problems, but there is no single, specific medical treatment or diagnostic test for Asperger disorder.
There is much more to say. Asperger disorder is a brain disorder. Many different patterns are possible. This makes diagnosis difficult. Many langauge-based treatments can help. Explore HelpForKidSpeech.org for more information.
Question
What are general characteristics of Asperger's Syndrome?Answer
Asperger's syndrome is a neurological difference which includes impairment of social interaction such as knowing 'what to say' in a given situation, nonverbal language impairments such as lack of eye contact and lack of understanding of jokes, naivety like not knowing if someone is saying what is true vs. what is not true. People with asperger's syndrome usually take information literally and Abstract thought is very hard for them to grasp. Individuals with Asperger's syndrome find it difficult every day to function without outside support. Even if they obtain a college degree, they may find that having a regular job may be difficult to keep, and find relationships hard to maintain.
There is no cure for Asperger's Syndrome, but with much support, individuals will find life satisfying and worthwhile.
Symptoms
Symptoms include difficulty with social relationships, limited and often eccentric interests, difficulty adapting to change, and difficulty with non-verbal communication such as gesture, eye contact, and turn-taking in conversation.
Often, individuals diagnosed with Asperger disorder do not show symptoms in their first few years of life. They may seem shy or aloof, and sometimes appear hyperactive. Sometimes they seem anxious as young children. By school age, they often seem "different" and have difficulty making friends or fitting in. They could have learning disabilities, but may be good students, and can even be gifted. This makes them quite different from children with classic autism who usually have severe learning problems.
Some of the common characteristics of Asperger disorder include:
- Lack of empathy. They do not seem to take the other person's feelings into account. They may appear rude or insensitive, or selfish.
- Naivete. While they may seem rude, they are often unaware of how this affects other people. They are more likely to be teased or picked on.
- Odd way of talking, odd body posture. Many individuals with Asperger disorder will talk in a monotone, robotic way, or may use a "sing-song" tone of voice that does not vary with the meaning of what they say. They may walk or stand in unusual ways.
- Clumsiness. This often goes along with Asperger disorder but it is not specific.
- Poor nonverbal skills. This may go along with clumsiness. In Asperger disorder, individuals often have good vocabulary and grammar knowledge, but do poorly with mechanical skills, puzzles, or "visualizing" things.
- Poor eye contact. Individuals with Asperger disorder frequently have to be prompted to look at people. This seems different from shyness. Shy individuals use their eye contact appropriately when they do use it. People with Asperger disorder seem unaware of how to use eye contact. It as if they "forget" to look at someone when they are talking to them.
- Restricted or eccentric interests. These interests are usually more complex than those of children with autism, but still would be considered odd for a child, or excessive. For example, they may be interested in unusual collections. They may have only a few topics of conversation. While they may be "experts" on these topics, they are not interested in what the other person has to say, or may be very repetitive in the way they talk about their interests.
- Unusual responses to sensations. The term "sensory integration disorder" is confusing to most people. What we can observe is that some individuals act like they respond differently to noise, touch, texture, movement, light, and smell. They may be unusually bothered by certain textures of clothing, may get upset if served the "wrong" brand of food, or may cover their ears because of some noises but not others.
- Impairment or handicap. Symptoms of Asperger disorder have to be severe enough to cause significant impairment in every day life. Simple examples would include having to attend a special education class, inability to participate in community activities without extra support, serious problems with behavior (such as disruptive or aggressive behavior), or serious impact on family life.
- Pragmatic language impairment. This could include difficulty with eye contact, greeting, holding conversations, adjusting what you see based on different situations, or even recognizing what situation you are in (formal, informal, casual, intimate).
- Semantic impairment. The term "semantics" has to do with the meaning of language, which is often different from the "literal" meaning of words. Typical problems include not getting jokes, taking speech literally (not understanding figures of speech), or insistence on following literal rules.
How common is Asperger Disorder?
Asperger disorder is more common than Autism, and it may affect as many as 1 out of every 200 individuals. It seems to affect males more often than females. Asperger disorder is probably underdiagnosed in girls because they are less like to be disruptive. It is often not diagnosed until age 8 or older. It is a lifelong problem though most individuals with Asperger disorder are self-supporting and they can be successful in careers. It may run in families.
Individuals with Asperger disorder often need accomodations in school and are eligible for help under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Eligibility may be due to an associated learning problem, or under the category "Otherwise Health Impaired." In some states, they are eligible under a language-impaired category because of their pragmatic language difficulties.
They usually want to make and keep friends, but need adult support to be successful. They seem to be more vulnerable to emotional difficulties.
Treatment
Typical behavior modification methods used for children with emotional disturbances are often ineffective for children with Asperger disorder. Whenever possible, they should be educated in mainstream settings with additional supports as needed. The Functional Behavior Assessment approach is usually effective at finding the cause of challenging behavior. Social skills training can be helpful, but many children and adults with Asperger Disorder need ongoing social support.
By the age of 18, many individuals will have been treated with some kind of medication for related behavior or emotional problems, but there is no single, specific medical treatment or diagnostic test for Asperger disorder.
There is much more to say. Asperger disorder is a brain disorder. Many different patterns are possible. This makes diagnosis difficult. Many langauge-based treatments can help. Explore HelpForKidSpeech.org for more information.
