If you are a clinician who works with children on the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) you are probably very familiar with the disorder and have counseled others on understanding autism characteristics in youth and children. As a clinician, you may find that a lot of people ask you about the characteristics of this disorder and how to determine if a child would benefit from additional assistance in their school setting.
3 Different Types of ASD Characteristics
Understanding autism characteristics in youth begins with the knowledge that there are 3 different categories of symptoms. The most common characteristics can be categorized as relating to:
- Behavioral issues — youth who display many different types of behavioral issues may have ASD as the underlying cause of these issues. Targeted assessment tools can help clinicians to pinpoint the exact causes and most effective remedies for such behavioral events. Hyper-focus on a single task or subject matter is just one example of a behavioral characteristic that is prevalent in many youths who have been diagnosed with ASD.
- Interpersonal communication — communication is one of the most challenging aspects of working with children and youth with ASD. The inability to read non-verbal cues is one of the strongest markers of ASD and is the cause of many interpersonal communication challenges. What is often mistaken for disinterest may be an inability to interpret what other children are trying to convey to them.
- Social interaction — children and youth who prefer to self-entertain and can find it difficult to form friendships and even classroom relationships with their peers. Additionally, there are many examples of ASD youth who suffer from speech impairment. During a comprehensive evaluation, it can be determined if such speech issues are part of a larger situation that includes ASD.
In order to better understand these characteristics and provide a framework that suits both the child and their family, it is important to identify the traits that are most prevalent in autistic youth and finding effective techniques to minimize disruptive behaviors. Without a proper evaluation, many ASD youth are determined to be ”problems” and ” disruptive” and very little effort is made to understand their difficulties.
With an appropriate diagnosis, students with ASD can begin to learn coping skills and strategies that can allow them to more fully participate in school activities, relationships, and learning. There are many comprehensive assessment tools available to help identify the needs of autistic youth and children. If a child is exhibiting significant difficulty and showing autism characteristics in the Behavioral, Interpersonal communication, and social interaction categories there are many effective approaches that can help to provide them with a more robust educational experience.
