Autism is the most commonly diagnosed developmental disorder, and although it is usually identified in childhood, it is a lifelong condition. Unlike mental retardation and learning disabilities, autism is not marked by impairment in intellectual functioning. Individuals with autism experience various levels of impairment in three areas of functioning--social, communication and behavior. The specific impairments can vary from one person to another (both in severity level and types of impairment), and clinically speaking, an individual must exhibit at least six symptoms across these categories.
Impaired Social Interaction Skills
Much of our social communication is non-verbal. Individuals with autism lack most or all of these skills, such as appropriate facial expressions and body language. Non-verbal skills such as nodding, posture, and eye contact are atypical in people with autism--leading to frequent misunderstanding in social exchanges. People with autism are typically disinterested in friendships and relationships that are founded on social or emotional exchanges. Adults who learn how to compensate for these impairments frequently lack spontaneity and are sometimes seen as rigid and uncaring.
Impaired Communication Skills
Some people with autism fail to develop speech, while others experience only minor impairment. In childhood, this frequently manifests as a delay in using speech to communicate. When an autistic person begins to speak, they usually don't maintain conversations, use atypical language or repeat words excessively. Speech often lacks the usual conversational cadence and intonation we are familiar with in casual conversation. People on the lower functioning range frequently display echolalia: repeating the phrases or words others have just used.
Behavioral Patterns That Are Rigid and Repetitive
The interests of autistic people are typically very focused and narrow. There are often inflexible behavioral patterns, and preoccupations with small parts of objects or specific facts or ideas. The intensity of focus and inflexibility varies from mild to severe. Children with severe forms of autism can spend hours rearranging small objects into various patterns. Autistic children can become fixated with a small part of a toy and, instead of playing with the toy, get focused on one small part--such as a button on a doll's dress, or a wheel on a toy truck. Rigidity is often exemplified in a reliance on routine with the experience of distress or confusion when that routine is broken.
Early Signs
Clinically speaking, there are few determined absolutes in terms of early signs of autism. However, research suggests that some signs of autism can be identified in children as young as 1 year. Parents can learn these possible early signs and speak with a professional if concerned. These signs indicate that a child may be at risk, but should not take the place of an assessment by a professional. They include a lack of smiling by the age of six months, no pointing or reaching or waving behaviors by 12 months, no one-word speech by 16 months and a lack of two-word speech by 24 months.
References
- American Psychological Association; The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; 2000.
- James Hansell & Lisa Damour; Abnormal Psychology; 2005.
- Chantal Sicile-Kira and Temple Grandin; Autism Spectrum Disorders: The Complete Guide to Understanding Autism, Asperger's Syndrome, Pervasive Developmental Disorder, and Other ASDs; 2004.
