Asperger's Syndrome in Children

Asperger's syndrome is a behavioral developmental disorder which is often mistaken for autism. Although, it is a form of autism, there is a vast difference between autism and Asperger's syndrome. Causes of Asperger's syndrome are not known, though it is believed to run in families. It affects about 0.024% to 0.36% of children. It can be diagnosed as early as 2 years of age.

Asperger's Syndrome in Children

Children with Asperger's syndrome have average or above average intelligence. Their physical development is normal and at par with their peers, although they may exhibit odd gait or certain unusual physical traits. They can be toilet trained at the same age as their peers and show no difficulty in performing day-to-day tasks. They can dress themselves up and do not have any learning disabilities. However, the reason Asperger's in children is called behavioral disorder is that, children with this disorder have tremendous difficulty in interacting with others. They lack social development as they cannot communicate effectively.

Asperger's Syndrome Symptoms

Children with Asperger's syndrome have no problem with language development and often have large vocabulary. However, in spite of this fact, they cannot communicate with others. They lack the social skills which we often take for granted. Let us see what are the implications of this disorder at various levels.

Failure to Understand Human Relationships
Children with Asperger's syndrome are unable to understand the significance of human relationships. They lack the feelings such as love, compassion, sympathy which form the basis of any relationship. As a result, they often have difficulty establishing friendship with anyone.

Confusion at Emotional Level
Children with Asperger's syndrome may often come across as blunt, insensitive without any compassion. However, this is not deliberate on their part, as they simply fail to grasp the gravity of situation. On the other hand, these children may also exhibit overemotional behavior at places where it is not required.

Failure to Understand Body Language
Asperger's in children prevents them from making use of body language to support their speech. As a result, they cannot interpret body language of others. They also do not find it necessary to make an eye contact while talking to others. Since, body language forms an integral part of our social skills, these children often warrant awkward situations while in public.

Failure to Understand Context of Language
Although, these children have precociously developed vocabularies, they often have difficulty interpreting the language. This is because, they tend to take things quite literally. They cannot identify sarcasm, figure of speech and other contexts of language.

Inability to Generalize Things
Children with Asperger's syndrome cannot relate things and have difficulty generalizing things. As a result, they need to be given specific, distinct instructions every time. For instance, when they are given an instruction regarding not to hit kids at school, they cannot relate it with the fact that they are not supposed to hit kids at other places as well.

Obsession
Children with Asperger's syndrome are often obsessed with something in their life, be it a hobby or a skill. They can go on discussing their obsession for hours, however this communication is often one sided. They do not feel any need to listen to other people nor do they need any feedback. They can go to any lengths to pursue their obsession. Apart from their area of interest, they have little interest in anything else.

Affinity for Rules
Asperger's syndrome behavior forces children to follow a strict routine. They like everything structured and as per rules. They are very rigid when it comes to following rules. They are inflexible in their schedule and are unwilling to accommodate any changes. They get irritable and angry when they find their peers cheating or breaking rules.

Asperger's syndrome in children can be controlled by behavioral therapies with child psychologists. Parental intervention is of utmost importance at every level. Not only should they accept the child as a part of a family, they should also be able to address his specific needs. Similarly, they should also be able to handle any situations of conflict that might arise due to child's socially withdrawn behavior. They should incessantly try to encourage the child to interact socially. This may sometimes lead to frustration, but then you have to consider your child's interest in the long run.