Asperger’s Syndrome Essay

In the article, “How to Speak Asperger’s,” by Fran Goldfarb and Guthrie Devine, the authors contend that learning to communicate with people with Asperger’s Syndrome is an important skill. The authors introduce the article by providing a narrative about Goldfarb’s son. The point of her narrative is that communication is misunderstood with people with Asperger’s Syndrome (AS). The author, Fran Goldfarb, explains how her son misunderstands communication with his teachers, and how punishment is ineffective, because of his Asperger’s. The authors start by explaining why communication is very complex. To begin with, people with AS struggle with communication, because of their lack of social cues. They tend to miss irony, humor, and they take everything literally. That’s why people with AS don’t understand communication and everything is a struggle for them.

Approximately 947,570 Americans have Asperger’s Syndrome (AS), however, it is not an easy disorder to explain (Bashe 19). With multiple conditions and characteristics in each case, AS is not an easy disorder to diagnose. Asperger’s Syndrome was named after Hans Asperger, an Austrian physician, who first described the disorder in 1944 after studying a group of children with similar, unusual characteristics. However, AS was not made an official disease until 1994. Consequently, Asperger disease is just now becoming published and popular so there is still research and questions being answered. Asperger’s Syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder, is noted by above-average

Asperger’s syndrome is a condition that is on the autism spectrum. The American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) uses three standard criteria to specify the severity of the condition. In John M. Mahoney’s article, he says that “The core symptoms of the disorder fall into two broad clusters: Criterion A describes qualitative impairment in social interaction; Criterion B contains examples of restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests, and activities” (3). Within these clusters, there are multiple ‘classes’ of behavior under criterion A and B.

Problems with social skills include difficulty interacting with others, are often awkward in social situations, and have difficulty starting and maintaining a conversation. Individuals with Asperger’s syndrome may develop odd, repetitive movements, such as hand twitching or finger twisting. They might also develop unusual rituals, such as getting dressed in a specific order, and are resistant to change the ritual. Some communication difficulties people with Asperger's syndrome may exhibit are, not being able to make eye contact when speaking with someone, trouble using facial expressions and gestures, and understanding body language. They also have a tendency to misunderstand language in context and are very literal in their use of language. Individuals could express limited range of interests; they could develop an almost obsessive interest in a few areas, such as weather, topics in school, or sports. Many individuals with Asperger's syndrome are exceedingly gifted or skilled in a particular area, such as history or science. The coordination of individuals with Asperger's syndrome may seem clumsy or awkward.

The prognosis for the individual with ASD is dependent on the severity of the disorder. In Asperger’s syndrome, a mild form of ASD, the symptoms of shyness and impaired social interaction are present. However, in more

Autism spectrum disorders are a class of developmental disorders that impair social skills, behavior, and communication (Center for Disease Control). ASDs are considered ‘spectrum’ disorders because each patient has a unique experience in the nature and severity of their symptoms (Center for Disease Control). Under the umbrella of ASDs, there are three types of disorders, including Autistic disorder, Asperger Syndrome, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (Center for Disease Control). Autistic disorder is the most severe of the three, and patients exhibit significant problems with language, communication, and behavior (Center for Disease Control). Furthermore, people with Autistic disorder often have some intellectual impairment (Center for Disease Control). Asperger Syndrome is a milder form of autistic disorder where patients have some developmental delays, but their language and intellect are not affected (Center for Disease Control). The mildest of the ASDs is the pervasive developmental disorder. These patients usually don’t meet all of the criteria for autistic disorder, but do show some signs of social and communication problems (Center for Disease Control). The number of children diagnosed with ASD is growing, and currently 1 in 88 children fall somewhere on the spectrum (Mari-Bauset et al., 2013). Boys are four times more likely than girls to have autism, and while the exact cause of these disorders is unknown, both genetic and

Asperger’s syndrome is a developmental syndrome. It is said that every 2 out of 10,000 children are affected by this disorder. Asperger’s is mostly diagnosed in young children. Parents usually recognize symptoms of this disorder in their kids around the time they turn 3 years old. Asperger’s is sometimes considered a form of autism. I find this syndrome to be very intriguing. I’m going to enlighten you with more information about Asperger’s and a few real life cases of it.

Autism is a brain disorder that is characterized by slow and difficult comprehension of spoken and non-verbal communication and repetition of behaviors. Autism is normally noticed in the first two years of a child (Myers & Johnson, 2007). Asperger syndrome is an autistic disorder that has almost the same similarities with autism. People with Asperger syndrome have little comprehension of the world and its surroundings and poor communication with other people. People with Asperger syndrome are hard to recognize, as they do not show on their outward appearances. They are average or above average intellectually and have fewer problems in terms of speech and specific learning disabilities unlike in autism. These difficulties include dyslexia, epilepsy, and attention

Aside from routines and rituals, another essential symptom in Asperger’s is poor or nonexistent social skills. People with Asperger’s syndrome have difficulty during conversation and are awkward when starting conversation ("What is Asperger's Syndrome?

The first resource (Appendix A) is an information page entitled ‘What is Asperger Syndrome’ and particularly focusses on the medical/deficit model of disability, a model which involves identifying symptoms, diagnosing a disease or a deficit and prescribing appropriate treatment (E214, Unit 2, p. 47). This resource is aimed at people who have been diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome, for parents whose

Children with Asperger’s Syndrome have developmental characteristics that cause challenges when growing up. They might develop speech that has peculiarities such as speaking in an overly formal manner. Children might also revolve many of their conversations around their few topics of interest. Many children with Asperger 's usually do not understand what is socially appropriate in a conversation. If asked about how they are doing, a child with Asperger 's might respond with a long reaction about their day.

Asperger’s Syndrome and Autism are both known as “Autism Spectrum Disorders.” Because they are both AS disorders they share characteristics but still have differences. The symptoms experienced by people with Asperger syndrome are usually less severe than those experienced by patients with classic autism. Many people with the Autism disorder and Asperger’s syndrome struggle in the social aspect. People who have autism and Asperger's disorder both suffer from poor communication skills. Even though the person who has Asperger's may have great expressive language skills, he or she will have problems communicating due to trouble interpreting other people's social cues. Therefore, both have trouble maintaining age appropriate relationships. Poor

Asperger’s disorder (AD) is a disruption in the formation of the child’s physical and or psychological development and recognizing these, the disorder was separated from Autism in 1944, to provide a basis for each child to get the proper care. All children with Asperger Disorder will show some traits in these three categories; impaired social skills, trouble communicating with others and a pattern of behavior, interest, and activities’ will be limited and recurring; they become obsessed with a single theme. Usually the child will have the normal communication skills in the beginning years. They will be using single words by age one. They just will not be using them in the normal way. When doctors are testing for this disorder, they are looking for specific behaviors or skills that are either present or absent. If the right services are available, Asperser’s children will show significant improvement in language

Communication is one of the hardest challenges with Asperger's. People with Asperger's have a limited area of interest, resulting in the excessive discussion about this area of interest. They often do not realize that someone has lost interest in the topic of discussion ("PubMedHealth"). "Most treatment efforts focus on enhancing communication skills and reducing problem behaviors. For children with Asperger's syndrome, most therapy should consist of school education combined with special psychological supports for communication and socialization problems "("Magill's Medical Guide"). Fortunately, people, like Jacob, have tutors or teachers to help them converse and behave in a calm and collected manner. Jess, Jacob's tutor, teaches him how to order food politely, how to greet people, and overall, how to carry on a conversation without delving too deep into a certain subject. Being in a school environment gives one with Asperger's a sense of belonging or recognition. Jacob goes to a public school that allows him to use a "get out of class" pass if it gets too overwhelming for him.

Asperger Syndrome is an unfortunate condition to acquire. Asperger’s is considered to be a pervasive developmental disorder. Pervasive developmental disorders are most commonly involved with slower than average learning of everyday skills. Individuals with Asperger Syndrome will experience many difficulties. These individuals express little and bizarre social interaction. Next, their speech is monotone and short. Unfortunately, people with Asperger Syndrome will also experience difficulty with nonverbal communication. Examples of nonverbal communication are facial expressions, hand gestures, and waving. Overall, Asperger victims are socially awkward. These are all the struggles and symptoms that an Asperger victim will experience daily.