A developmental disability significantly affecting verbal and social interaction, generally evident before age 3, that adversely affects a child’s performance. Other characteristic often associated with autism are engagement in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resistance to environmental change or changed in daily routine, and unusual responses to sensory experiences. The term does not apply if a child’s educational performance is adversely affected primarily because the child has a serious emotional disturbance.
Characteristics of Social Behavior
- Give little attention to or make little eye contact with others.
- Difficulty participating in the normal give-and-take social interaction.
- Limited engagement in social interactions
- Rarely display emotions.
- Rarely seek out affection or physical contact from others, including parents.
- Difficulty forming attachments.
Characteristics of Communication
- Echolalia.
- Limited meaningful speech.
- Limited initiation of conversation.
- Difficulties in comprehending language, especial abstract language.
Characteristics of Interests and Activities
- Limited cooperative play and play skills.
- Repetitive, stereotypic manipulations of objects.
- Ritualistic patterns of activity.
- Self-stimulatory behavior.
- Strong resistance to change in environment and routine.
Cognitive and Learning Characteristics
- 75% have concurrent diagnosis of MR.
- Higher scores in visual or manipulative skills; lower scores in linguistic skills, abstract or symbolic processes.
- Savant skills.
- Stimulus overselectivity in information processing and learning.
Physical Characteristics
- No particular external physical features or anomalies.
- Autism may be found in children with identified genetic or chromosomal disorders such Down syndrome or fragile X.
Other Charactiristics
- 25% display seizure activity.
- Inconsistent sensory responses.
- Unusual or affective emotional behaviors
- Disruptive behaviors: aggression & self-injurious behavior.
The above information thankfully comes from the psychology.ccsu.edu at the following link.