Way back in 1944 Hans Asperger initially named this disorder as "autistic psychopathy”. The specific factors causing this disorder have not been distinctly identified. It is widely believed that genetic factors do play some role too and the disorder is believed to run down the family tree. But it could not be associated with any specific gene. It will be interesting to know the common asperger’s syndrome symptoms.
The following symptoms or traits are common.
- People with asperger’s syndrome get obsessed or fixated with a single topic or entity, ignoring the surrounding environment or the background. Incessant monotonous talk and aggressively overwhelming attention on a single topic is a very common phenomenon.
- More often than not the children with asprerger’s syndrome are of above average intelligence and IQ. They are often capable of developing intense interest in selected areas. There are many people with asperger disorder, who had shown advanced capabilities and excellence in the fields of music, mathematics,science and information technology.
- Those affected with asperger syndrome will gather, assimilate and present many data and information about their topic of interest, but they just remain exhaustively engaged with it, without trying to come to any conclusion on the topic.
- They are found to be insensitive about the listener, or the partners in the dialogue. They may keep harping on the same tune, even though that partner has lost interest. They fail to recognize that the partner in conversation is no more engaged with the topic.
- Very narrow areas of interest, which may involve obsession with an object or instance. Examples may include obsession with a song, a specific jacket, a phone directory etc.
- Generally, no withdrawal symptoms are noticed among those diagnosed with asperger’s disorder. In contrast, people with autism tend to withdraw from the world. Those suffering from the asperger disorder, usually try to socialize. But it was observed that their socialization mission gets defeated by their lack of verbal and linguistic incoherence, thereby causing social isolation and estrangement. They get easily branded or singled out as ‘weird’ or ‘strange’ and end up as a social outcast.
- Most of the times, their social incompatibility becomes quite noticeable. They fail to master the social language. Sometimes they cannot differentiate between a joke and a serious statement, often interpreting the conversations literally, without being able to understand the implication.
- People with this disorder, generally have problem in maintaining eye-contact during conversation. Also, in a group they fail to manage their gestures and postures in terms of the accepted social norms and format. Their facial expression, body language, verbal and non-verbal cues do appear distinctly asynchronous.
- When it comes to relationship with same-age children and adults, they find it troublesome. Because they fail to interact rationally and emotionally in normal social milieu. They fail to sympathize or show empathy with others, without expressing any emotion at others happiness or grief. Also, they are less flexible about routines or rituals and least accommodative in their friends’ circle.
- Sometimes asperger’s syndrome is associated delay in motor development and unusual physical behavior. Examples include delay in learning how to ride a bike, or swim or to catch a ball. These children also exhibit repetitive or recurrent finger twisting, flapping, or whole body movements, with apparent clumsiness when they move or walk. Sometime such repetitive behavioral patterns cause them physical injury too.
