Also known as “autism lite” or a “shadow syndrome” of autism, Aspergers is an autistic spectrum disorder that affects approximately 1 out of every 200 people.
Those with Aspergers are high functioning in the sense that they are better able to maintain social relationships than those with autism. Unlike those with autism, people with Aspergers often score highly on measures of verbal intelligence.
When contemplating disorders such as Aspergers, there is a tendency to focus on negative aspects. But many of those with Aspergers have positive traits as well, which has led some people to question whether it should be viewed as a difference rather than a disorder.
Here are the positives associated with the Aspergers condition. People with Aspergers:
- are excited about the world around them with a zest and hunger for learning
- are fascinated by facts and dates
- are frequent victims of social weaknesses of others, while steadfast in the belief of the possibility of genuine friendship
- are loyal with impeccable dependability
- are often very perceptive
- are often original with unique perspective in problem solving
- are persistence of thought
- are physically beautiful
- are seekers of truth, conversation free of hidden meaning or agenda
- are sensitive to specific sensory experiences and stimuli, for example: hearing, touch, vision, and/or smell
- are the "social unsung hero" with trusting optimism
- are truthful to a fault, blurting out the first thing that pops into their mind, speaking things the rest of us think but would be too polite to say – and because of their innocence it's probably going to be accepted better than if it came from another mouth
- avoid "ritualistic small talk" or socially trivial statements and superficial conversation
- can hear things normal people can't hear
- can memorize lines from movies
- can spend days in their room reading children's encyclopedias
- have a great consideration of details
- have a rare freshness and sense of wonderment
- have a rote memory and an overall good memory
- have a sweet innocence about them
- have an encyclopedic or "CD ROM" knowledge of one or more topics
- have avid perseverance in gathering and cataloging information on a topic of interest
- have clarity of values/decision making unaltered by political or financial factors
- have enthusiasm for unique interests and topics
- have exceptional memory and recall of details often forgotten or disregarded by others, for example: names, dates, schedules, routines
- have knowledge of routines and a focused desire to maintain order and accuracy
- have narrow, yet highly focused interests
- have outside interests like reading about weather instead of learning what they're learning in school
- have strength in individual sports and games, particularly those involving endurance or visual accuracy, including rowing, swimming, bowling, chess
- have the ability to pursue personal theory or perspective despite conflicting evidence
- have the amazing ability to absorb facts easily in their brains
- listen without continual judgment or assumption
- live in the present, and don't hold grudges
- often have advanced vocabulary and interest in words
- often have the ability to regard others at "face value
- see things differently than others
- seek sincere, positive, genuine friends with an unassuming sense of humor
- speak their mind irrespective of social context or adherence to personal beliefs
- take everything literal and are usually unprejudiced
- they remember lot of things about their life, both past and present