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1) Social Reasoning - the child avoids social interactions, the child is described as passive, "active but odd" which is a child that wants to interact but appears odd due to lack of social understanding

2) Language Abilities - child may have a greater comprehension of language rather than expression but does not replace lack of speech with the development of natural gestural language which is a silent child, in some children vocalization can occur but the speech requires an external prompt, some children have great verbal fluency and vocabulary but encounters problems in the pragmatic aspects of language

3) Cognition - the first stage is a child who has profound learning difficulties and significant intellectual impairment assessed on a standard intelligence scale, the next stage is a child who is familiar with and has relatively advanced skills in activities such as construction toys, when a child starts school they are given a formal test of their intellectual abilities which identifies an uneven profile of cognitive development

4) Special Interests - a preoccupation with parts of an object such as spinning the wheels on a toy car, acquisition of information and remembering facts about a topic such as animals and electronics, the number of interests vary according to the child's developmental level and intellectual capacity

5) Sensory Sensitivity - the most severe is when the child has sudden explosions of loud noises, visual sensations that are "blinding" and touch and aromas that are perceived as aversive and scary, there can be sensitivity to natural light intensity or artificial light, also included a lack of visible response to certain sensory experiences such as not communicating when the child is in pain, the child can develop maladaptive strategies to control their environment in order to avoid these experiences

6) Expression and Management of Emotions - a thorough assessment of a child with ASD should include an evaluation of the child's ability to express emotions while also being able to describe emotions in others and themselves and to express and manage intense emotions, psychologists have modified cognitive behavior therapy to treat mood disorders in children who have ASD

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Dr. Temple Grandin: an autistic activist who has received a doctoral degree in animal science and has shared her story to inspire others with autism.
-Susan Stokes: an autism consultant and speaker who has presented at various national conferences including the Autism Society National Conference, she has also published multiple books and journals on autism
-Dr. Robert Schultz: the director of the Center for Autism Research at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and has been the author of many peer reviewed publications on autism

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Famous People with Autism Spectrum Disorder

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Famous People with Autism Spectrum Disorder

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-Bill Gates: Co-Founder of the Microsoft Corporation
-Steve Jobs: CEO of Apple
-Michelangelo: Sculptor, Painter, Architect, Poet
-Andy Warhol: Artist

These are just a few examples of extraordinary people that have or had ASD in their lifetimes. All of these men went on to do incredible things despite having ASD and most people would never know that they even possessed this condition.

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Psychological Theories of Autism Spectrum Disorder

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Psychological Theories of Autism Spectrum Disorder

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1) Impaired Theory of Mind
-refers to the ability to recognize and understand the thoughts, beliefs, desires, and intentions of other people in order to make sense of their behavior and predict what they might do next
-known as "mind blindness"
-a child with ASD normally does not recognize the cues that indicate thoughts and feelings of other people

2) Weak Central Coherence
-difficulty perceiving and understanding the overall picture or gist of something (Frith & Happe, 1994).
-children with ASD become preoccupied with the detail, focusing on parts rather than the whole picture

3)Impaired Executive Function
Problems with functions such as:
-organizational and planning abilities
-working memory
-inhibition and impulse control
-time management and prioritizing
-using new strategies

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-Not included in the DSM-5 but those with an ASD Level 1 can use the term Asperger Syndrome.
-Replaced with the new diagnostic term ASD Level 1 without language or intellectual impairment and according to the authors of DSM-5, children and adults previously diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome should be given the diagnosis of ASD.
-This term is still used by clinicians, parents, teachers, therapists and the general public in conversations as the basis for seeking more information on how to help the child effected

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-Sleep disturbance and feeding problems within a child's first year
-Difficulty comforting the child
-Delayed speech development
-Not drawn towards social activities and preferring to play alone.
-Not pointing to interesting objects that they want to share the experience with
-The child does not imitate a parent's actions or domestic chores, or repeat an activity that caused a parent to smile or show approval

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Autism spectrum disorder is a neurodevelopment condition that is complex and hard to diagnose but can be diagnosed when the following are present:

-Persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts.

-Restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities.

-The symptoms are present in the early development period and cause clinically significant impairment in social, occupational or other important areas of current functioning.

These disturbances are not better explained by intellectual disability or global developmental delay. Social communication should be below that expected for general developmental level.