What are some of the behavioral characteristics of autism?
Host: What are some examples of behavioral characteristics of autism? Peggy Halliday: Behaviors of autism that show up tend to be in terms of excesses of behaviors that might appear in typical kids but not to this extent. For example, stereotypical behavior sometimes just called stereotypies or things like motor movements, rocking, spinning, flicking your fingers, flapping yours hands, these things all show up in some extent if you look peak-end to any classroom, you will see kids twirling their hair or swinging their leg or tapping their pen, but in students with autism, that shows up to a greater degree. Another characteristic of autism that is behavioral is a persistent preoccupation with a particular interest, it maybe an object or a topic or it could even be a part of an object or a part of something. Another characteristic is an excessive adherence to routines and rituals making it very difficult for children to transition from one activity to another and allowing for some obsess
