Characteristics of autism
- Difficulty with social communication. People with autism have difficulties with both verbal and non-verbal language. Many have a very literal understanding of language and are bewildered by facial expressions, jokes and sarcasm.
- Difficulty with social interaction. People with autism often have difficulty recognising or understanding other people’s emotions and feelings, and expressing their own, which can make it more difficult for them to fit in socially.
- Difficulty with social imagination. Social imagination allows us to understand and predict other people’s behaviour, make sense of abstract ideas, and to imagine situations outside our immediate daily routine. The world can seem a very unpredictable and confusing place to people with autism, who often prefer to have a fixed daily routine so that they can know what is going to happen next.
Other related characteristics.
Sensory sensitivity.
People with autism may experience some form of sensory sensitivity in one or more of the 5 senses.
For e.g. a person with autism may find certain background sounds, which other people block out, unbearably loud or distracting. This can cause anxiety or even physical pain.
Some may not experience pain or extremes of temperature and others may rock or flap hands to stimulate sensation or deal with stress.
Special interests.
Many people with autism have intense special interests or obsessions which can change over time or be lifelong.
Learning disabilities.
People with autism may have learning disabilities which can affect all aspects of someone’s life from studying in school to self-help skills.
Other conditions associated are attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ("ADHD"), dyslexia and dyspraxia.
