http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asperger_syndromeAlthough adults with AS may have similar problems, they are not as likely to be given treatment as a child would. They may find it difficult finding employment or entering undergraduate or graduate schools because of poor interview skills or a low score on standardized or personality tests. They also may be more vulnerable to poverty and homelessness than the general population, because of their difficulty finding (and keeping) employment, lack of proper education, premature social skills, and other factors.<85><111> If they do become employed, they may be misunderstood, taken advantage of, paid less than those without AS, and be subject to bullying and discrimination. Communication deficits may mean people at work have difficulty understanding the person with AS, who in turn does not understand them. Resultant problems with authority figures continue as difficult, tense relations become prevalent.
People with AS report a feeling of being unwillingly detached from the world around them. They may have difficulty finding a life partner or getting married due to poor social skills. In a similar fashion to school bullying, the person with AS is vulnerable to problems in their neighbourhood, such as anti-social behaviour and harassment. Due to social isolation, they can be seen as the 'black sheep' in the community and thus may be at risk of wrongful suspicions and allegations from others.<85> Individuals with AS will need support if they desire to make connections on a personal level. Support from family and friends is perceived to be the most useful, but in order for them to see the purpose or relevance of a relationship beyond a point of interest or concept it may represent to them, they may require facilitation from a skilled professional. These connections are crucial throughout the life of an individual with AS. It is in adulthood that these connections become most complex and unfortunately this is when the fewest services are provided for such people. Direct teaching around how to identify and establish social boundaries as well as recognizing a person and relationship that he or she can trust is necessary for social success. The complexity and inconsistency of the social world can pose an extreme challenge for individuals with AS. And if all else fails, at least in the UK Aspergers is now confirmed as being covered by the Disability Discrimination Act. This means that those with AS who get treated badly because of it may have some redress. The first case was that of Hewitt v Motorola 2004 <112> and the second was Isles v Ealing Council <113>.
Clinical features
AS is characterized by:<14><19>
* Narrow interests or preoccupation with a subject to the exclusion of other activities
* Repetitive behaviors or rituals
* Peculiarities in speech and language
* Extensive logical/technical patterns of thought
* Socially and emotionally inappropriate behavior and interpersonal interaction
* Problems with nonverbal communication
* Clumsy and uncoordinated motor movements
The most common and important characteristics of AS can be divided into several broad categories: social impairments, narrow but intense interests, and peculiarities of speech and language. Other features are commonly associated with this syndrome, but are not always regarded as necessary for diagnosis. This section mainly reflects the views of Attwood, Gillberg, and Wing on the most important characteristics of AS; the DSM-IV criteria represent a slightly different view. Unlike most forms of PDDs, AS is often camouflaged, and many people with the disorder blend in with those who do not have it. The effects of AS depend on how an affected individual responds to the syndrome itself.<28>
Social differences
Main article: Asperger syndrome and interpersonal relationships
Although there is no single feature that all people with AS share, difficulties with social behavior are nearly universal and are one of the most important defining criteria. People with AS may lack the ability to communicate their own emotional state (alexithymia) and the natural ability to see the subtexts of social interaction, resulting in well-meaning remarks that may offend, or finding it hard to know what is "acceptable." The unwritten rules of social behavior that mystify so many with AS have been termed the "hidden curriculum."<31> People with AS must learn these social skills intellectually through seemingly contrived, dry, math-like logic rather than intuitively through normal emotional interaction.<32>
Non-autistics are able to gather information about other people's cognitive and emotional states based on clues gleaned from the environment and other people's facial expression and body language, but, in this respect, some Aspergers are impaired; this is sometimes called mind-blindness.<33><34> Mind-blindness is also known as a lack of "theory of mind."<35> Without theory of mind, AS individuals lack the ability to recognize and understand the thoughts and feelings of others. Some are deprived of this insightful information and are unable to interpret or understand the desires or intentions of others and thereby are unable to predict what to expect of others or what others may expect of them. This sometimes leads to social awkwardness and inappropriate behavior. In Asperger's Syndrome: Intervening in Clinics, Schools and Communities, Tony Attwood categorizes the many ways that lack of theory of mind can negatively impact the social interactions of people with Asperger's:<35>
1. Difficulty reading the social and emotional messages in the eyes: those with AS don't look at eyes often, and when they do, they can't read them.
2. Making literal interpretation: Some AS individuals have trouble interpreting colloquialisms, sarcasm, and metaphors.
3. Being considered disrespectful and rude: prone to egocentric behavior, individuals with Asperger's miss cues and warning signs that this behavior is inappropriate.
4. Honesty and deception: children with Asperger's are often considered "too honest," and may even proclaim themselves to be "honest" or "frank" as a way of explaining their behavior. They have difficulty being deceptive, even at the expense of hurting someone's feelings.
5. Inadequate nonverbal communication: their facial expressions, hand gestures, and other forms of body language, are sometimes limited.
6. Becoming aware of making social errors: as children with Asperger's mature, and become aware of their inability to connect, their fear of making a social mistake, and their self-criticism when they do so, can lead to social phobia.
7. Differences in speech: they display less speech intonation than neurotypical persons. Their speech may be perceived as "flat." However, those with AS also possess superficial fluency in day-to-day conversation.
8. A sense of paranoia: because of their inability to connect, persons with Asperger's have trouble distinguishing the difference between the deliberate or accidental actions of others, which can in turn lead to a feeling of paranoia.
9. Managing conflict: being unable to understand other points of view can lead to inflexibility and an inability to negotiate conflict resolution. Once the conflict is resolved, remorse may not be evident.
10. Sense of humor: although jokes can be grasped at an intellectual level, the emotional worth of humor, in some Asperger individuals, is not appreciated. Smiles and laughter may appear unnatural with some Aspergers.
11. Awareness of hurting the feelings of others: some Aspergers exhibit a lack of empathy, which often leads to unintentionally offensive or insensitive behaviors.
12. Repairing someone's feelings: lacking intuition about the feelings of others, people with AS have little understanding of how to console someone or how to make them feel better.
13. Recognizing signs of boredom: inability to understand other people's interests can lead AS persons to be inattentive to others. Conversely, people with AS often fail to notice when others are uninterested.
14. Introspection and self-consciousness: individuals with AS have difficulty understanding their own feelings or their impact on the feelings of other people.
15. Clothing and personal hygiene: people with AS tend to be less affected by peer pressure than others. As a result, they often do what is comfortable and are unconcerned about their impact on others.
16. Reciprocal love and grief: since people with AS have difficulty emotionally, their expressions of affection and grief are often short and weak.
17. Lack of participation in chitchat: they are not generally interested in, and do not participate in idle chat and gossip.
18. Preference of routine: they prefer routine work, and are not able to cope well to changes, even small ones. Such disruptions from routine can cause stress and anxiety.
19. Coping with criticism: people with AS are compelled to correct mistakes, even when they are made by someone in a position of authority, such as a teacher. For this reason, they can be unwittingly offensive.
20. Formal mannerisms and etiquette: their etiquette is formal, even within the family. Their speech may be interlaced with "thank you" or "please" or "good evening" more than necessary. Some persons with AS may even insist that other members of their family follow this ritual.
21. Speed and quality of social processing: because they respond through reasoning and not intuition, AS individuals tend to process social information more slowly than the norm, leading to uncomfortable pauses or delays in response. This means that although the AS individual will tend to make a more reasoned and balanced understanding and/or decision, it can lead to the AS individual being told to use their 'common sense' to solve problems, a concept they cannot understand or use in the way a neurotypical person can.
22. Faithfulness towards family: people with AS are staunchly faithful to their spouses and/or immediate members of their family.
23. Exhaustion: as people with AS begin to understand theory of mind, they must make a deliberate effort to process social information. This often leads to mental exhaustion.
24. Financial imprudence: although some people with AS can manage their own finances, in many cases linear thinking impedes their ability to make larger financial decisions, where they require the assistance of others.
Sorry to bore everyone. The link URL up top has far more information on the topic. It's also ironic, the first time I am a textbook case - for
something. :rofl:
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