According to the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders"(DSM), Asperger's Disorder (AD), sometimes called "Asperger's Syndrome," is one of the pervasive developmental disorders (PPDs). The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) regards AD as part of the autistic disorders spectrum. The DSM criteria for PPDs requires one or more symptoms from three groups of symptoms: two symptoms of "qualitative" problems in social relating; one symptom of repetitive, restricted, and stereotyped patterns of movement, interests, or other behavior; and, unlike other autism spectrum disorders, there is no general delay in language development.
Difficulty with Nonverbal Social Cues
A person with AD struggles to understand and respond to nonverbal behavior like maintaining eye-to-eye contact, and reading and responding to facial expressions, body language, and gestures. Others cannot read a person with AD socially because most human relating, from infancy onward, relies heavily on nonverbal cues.
Difficulty with Relationships With Peers
A person with AD may be unable to form social relationships or friendships with others at his developmental level. Often, it is much easier for the person with AD to form friendships with people or children below her level of development, probably because they are more accepting of a lower level of nonverbal behavior.
Lack of Spontaneous Sharing
Spontaneity is not easy for someone with AD, especially sharing his enjoyment in something, his interests, or his achievements. Because he does not understand the need for pointing things out, or other nonverbal gestures in order to communicate with others, he does not have a concept of sharing this way.
Lack of Reciprocity
It's not necessarily true that a person with AD does not care about others' feelings, interests, or things, but she is unable to reciprocate socially or emotionally. To others, her lack of reciprocal interaction may make her appear blank or uncaring. She simply cannot communicate in a spontaneous, reciprocal manner because this style of communication has no meaning for her.
Preoccupation With One Interest
According to the Mayo Clinic, the most important symptom in AD is the person's fixated, intense, preoccupation with whatever interests him. His focus on the activity seems abnormal, because he will talk about it, or do it, repetitively, to the exclusion of everything else if he can.
Rituals
Some people with AD repetitively engage in rituals or routines apparently without any reason. If the person with AD has such a ritual, she will perform it every day, without forgetting or missing it.
Movements
Stereotyped or repetitive movements are seen in some people with AD. The movements may involve the entire body, hands, and fingers. Sometimes the movements themselves are unusual, while others are notable because they are repetitive.
Parts of Objects
If a person displays extreme and ongoing preoccupations with parts of objects, rather than the whole, it may be a symptom of AD. For example, a child may focus on the wheel of a car and not recognize it as a part of the car.
No Developmental Delay in Language and Cognition
In AD, children develop language skills and other thinking abilities, even if they are developmentally delayed otherwise. The DSM also requires that the person be able to perform basic skills in self-care and adaptation to his environment for his age. Even though communication skills may be poor, children with Asperger's may score well on parts of IQ and achievement tests. Some are actually precocious or gifted in some way. This is why some refer to AD as high-functioning autism.
References
- "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th ed., Text Revision"; American Psychiatric Association; 2000
- "Asperger Syndrome Information Page"; National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, NIH, NINDS; as updated
- "Symptoms of Asperger's"; Mayo Clinic; as updated
