How does having autism affect the ability to interact with others?
Individuals with autism have difficulty interacting with others – it is in large part what defines the disorder. The social problems that people on the autism spectrum experience are likely a result of a combination of factors. Because social interactions tend to be spontaneous they are less predictable. They never occur in exactly the same way, so it is hard to provide consistent practice opportunities. Understanding the emotional context of an interaction requires an accurate interpretation of body language and facial expressions, something that people with autism experience great difficulty with. True reciprocal interactions are rarely ever fully achieved since individuals who have autism often fail to recognize that other people have their own thoughts, ideas, opinions, and beliefs. Social language is problematic because it involves the use of terms that are not concrete and where words can mean more than one thing. A restricted range of often unusual interests makes it difficult t
