Individuals diagnosed with autism are a very heterogeneous group in terms of traits. Although limitations in communication skills and social interaction and limited interests are common traits of individuals diagnosed with autism, the degree of the observed characteristics and performance in cognitive skills also differ between individuals.
For example, an individual with autism may have better social interaction skills than another on the spectrum. Therefore, it is of great importance to evaluate the general traits of autism that are mentioned below, taking into account individual differences.
Sensory Traits
1. Reactions to Auditory Stimuli
Individuals with autism may show different reactions to sounds. While some individuals with autism may overreact to sounds, some individuals with autism respond less or not at all to sounds. Not reacting to sounds in early childhood raises the suspicion that there may be an auditory problem in parents. However, in the tests, it is determined that there is no organic problem in their hearing ability. However, it is thought that they do not react to sounds because they are not very open to the warnings and auditory stimuli around them.
2. Reactions to Visual Stimuli
It is known that children with autism have problems not looking at human faces or some objects in their environment. On the other hand, it can be seen that they can stay focus on moving, rotating, or bright objects for a long time. It is also observed that some of them are uncomfortable with the light from time to time and even they can be more comfortable in a dark room.
3. Reactions to Tactile Stimuli
Some individuals with autism may overreact to being touched by anyone with crying, screaming, or various hand gestures. Some children, on the contrary, take extreme pleasure from being touched. A child with autism can take pleasure from a hug where a normally developed child may feel pain. There may be children with autism who do not react at all to hot or cold, as well as hypersensitive children with autism who may overreact to hot or cold. Some individuals may strongly avoid self-care activities. Personal care activities such as nail clipping, face washing, haircuts can become torture for both them and their caregivers.
Motor Development Traits
Although Kanner’s view supported by different researchers, children with autism have the same motor development characteristics as children with normal development, is scientifically accepted even though it is an undeniable fact that some differences are observed compared to their peers. Although they seem to have completed their physical development like their peers, the development of some of their skills may be late. They may acquire some movements and skills late or not at all, compared to their peers, due to their low imitation skills and low interest in their environment.
Cognitional Traits
One of the cognitive traits of children with autism is hyper selectivity. It is also defined as the difficulty in paying attention to all the features of the stimuli. As the number of stimuli increases, the cognitive processes of individuals with autism become more complex as they have difficulty paying attention to all stimuli. This situation affects not only a cognitive process but also social development negatively.
For example, a child with autism is only obsessed with facial expressions, not the words of the person with whom they will communicate. He misses other stimuli and the message is difficult and complex for him to understand. Therefore, it does not communicate.
In addition, the skills of processing and analyzing information of children with autism are different and more complex than individuals with normal development. There are problems in remembering and without clues. Although there is an opinion that individuals with autism have high mental potential, the mental potential of the vast majority is below normal. However, the correct interpretation of the intelligence tests applied to these children is of great importance. Because the inadequacies of individuals diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder in the areas of communication and social interaction may prevent them from giving correct answers to the questions in the intelligence tests.
Behavioral Traits
Self-stimulating behaviors are among the most common problematic behaviors among children with autism. Swinging on your own, clapping/waving hands, and repetitive behaviors that do not have any function are among the self-stimulating behaviors. These behaviors make social acceptance and learning difficult. Self-harming behaviors, which can be observed less frequently than self-stimulating behaviors such as biting and headbanging, can also create serious problems. In addition, about 10% of children with autism have unusual abilities and skills.
Language, Speech, Social Interaction, and Communication Traits
There is a delay in language development and they have serious difficulties in using the language for communication and interacting with others. About 35% of individuals with autism cannot speak at all. About 50% of them cannot use the language functionally. In addition, they may show impairments in verbal communication skills at different levels. Some individuals with autism have “mutism”, which is defined as the inability to speak at all.
Difficulty in using personal pronouns, unusual tones, difficulties in understanding the figurative meanings of words, idioms, abstract words, and language-based jokes are other features that can be observed in children with autism who have speaking skills. In addition, “echolalia“, which is defined as the child’s repetition of what he hears with the same tone, is one of the communication and speech traits that can be observed in children with autism. It is stated that the main problem against the obvious differences in language use is not in the structural dimension of the language but in the communication dimension.
Children with autism have limitations in their ability to initiate, maintain and end interactions with adults or peers. They cannot understand the feelings, thoughts, and beliefs of the other party, and they are not aware that the thoughts and feelings of others may differ from their own. It is observed that there is a problem in the development of a theory of mind skills, which are important for the social interaction, of individuals with autism.
10 Positive Known Traits of People with Autism Spectrum Disorder
1.People with autism do not know how to lie because they are concrete thinking people, they rarely lie.
All humans always talk about how important the truth is to us. But we all lie when it is needed. Many people who have completed their neurological development can easily lie and hide the truth. On the other hand, this is not easy for people with autism and they cannot understand being lied to.
Individuals on the autism spectrum tend to tell the truth no matter what. They reflect their feelings as they are, without the need to hide them. They say the thought that comes to their mind as it is, without the need for modification. If a person with autism says you look great, they really think you look great, or if a person with autism says you look ugly, they think you look ugly.
2. People with autism live the moment and the beauty at the moment.
Individuals who have completed their development normally do not pay much attention to what is happening around them, as they can be easily distracted. Individuals with autism, on the other hand, are very attentive to every detail around them. They notice all the details that we do not notice, and they see the beauty around them.
3. Individuals on the autism spectrum do not judge others easily.
Individuals with autism do not care about anything that we constantly criticize or judge in our daily life. Who is prettier, who is fatter, who is smarter, who earns more money, etc. are quite outside of their interests. Individuals on the autism spectrum find such situations unnecessary and are concerned with the reality below the surface, namely personality. Individuals who typically complete their development are more distant from children and individuals with other physical or developmental disorders as a child or even when they grow up, individuals with autism are more likely to tolerate these differences.
4. Individuals with autism do everything they do with great passion.
Many individuals on the autism spectrum have a great passion for people, ideas, events, and things. They have an extra passion for anything that falls within their interests. They make an extra effort and master everything they are interested in.
5. Social expectations are not important for individuals with autism, their moods are not dependent on social expectations.
People with autism never care what other people think about what they do. While they are having fun, sad, crying, or happy, they do it because they want it or because they feel it at that moment, not by thinking about what someone will say. They do it because they want it, not to get someone’s liking or to be a favorite of someone.
6. Individuals with autism have an incredible memory.
Since individuals with autism are more sensitive to details, their memory is also stronger than our, neurotypical people’s. They have a surprisingly strong photographic memory. These skills help them in many situations, from the smallest to the most complex.
7. Individuals on the autism spectrum are less materialistic.
Materialistic facts such as brand names, phone brands, luxury restaurants, and expensive products are quite insignificant for individuals with autism. They don’t worry at all about these external factors. Salary, title, career, etc. situations that worry us all in daily life are not desirable for them.
8. People with autism are very poor and confused at social questions that do not require answers.
Individuals with autism find questions that do not require an answer quite confusing and answer them. And they never understand why it doesn’t require an answer. If the answer is not asked, they wonder why it is asked.
9. People with autism do not have a secret life.
If someone with autism is telling you something, you don’t need to look for anything underneath. Whatever he wants, whatever he thinks, says, or does without hesitation. They don’t cheat at all.
10. Individuals with autism cause neurotypical individuals to broaden their perspectives.
The place of individuals with autism in the lives of neurotypical individuals like us is invaluable. Thanks to the questions they ask, their perspectives on life, and their deep thoughts, they open new perspectives and doors for us.
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