Get your own Free HomepageIt has come to my attention that the way the diagnostic criteria for Asperger's Syndrome is stated in the DSM IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) can be a bit confusing to interrput, so I will attempt to clearify them the best I understand them. If you want a proper diagnoses, I suggest that you consult with someone who is trained in diagnosing Asperger's Syndrome, and similar disorders. What is written in the DSM IV will be in bold black, and my comments will be in blue, under the DSM IV criteria they apply to, after this statement. Additional comments of mine will be in dark blue.
(I) Qualitative impairment in social interaction, as manifested by at least two of the following:
(A) marked impairments in the use of multiple nonverbal behaviors such as eye-to-eye gaze, facial expression, body posture, and gestures to regulate social interaction
Does the person have noticable impairments such as underuse or overuse of body gestures, and/or have trouble looking people in the eyes, and/or have few facial expressions, and/or have an odd posture?
(B) failure to develop peer relationships appropriate to developmental level
Does the person have a hard time forming friendships/relationships similar to the ones people their age do?
(C) a lack of spontaneous seeking to share enjoyment, interest or achievements with other people, (e.g.. by a lack of showing, bringing, or pointing out objects of interest to other people
Does the person fail to point out things that might interest the people around them, and/or fail to show interest in things that interest other people, and/or fail to share things that might interest other people?
(D) lack of social or emotional reciprocity
Does the person fail to respond to other peoples emotions or attempts at socializing?
If answer is yes to atleast two of the questions, the person meets the criteria for catagory I.
(II) Restricted repetitive & stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests and activities, as manifested by at least one of the following:
(A) encompassing preoccupation with one or more stereotyped and restricted patterns of interest that is abnormal either in intensity or focus
Does the person have an interest in something(s) which they are obsessed with, in other words, does the person have an obsessive interest in something?
(B) apparently inflexible adherence to specific, nonfunctional routines or rituals
Is the person inflexable to change in routines or rituals they engage in, which are not technically neccisary to engage in to complete a task, and/or preffer sameness, such as the same type of clothing, foods, etc?
(C) stereotyped and repetitive motor mannerisms (e.g. hand or finger flapping or twisting, or complex whole-body movements)
Does the person have a habit of doing something like flapping their hands, and/or twisting their hands or any other part of theor body, and/or rocking back and forth, and/or anything of that nature?
(D) persistent preoccupation with parts of objects
Does the person have an obsessive interest with a certain part or parts of an object or objects, for example, a spinning part?
If the answer is yes to atleast one of the above questions, then the person meets the criteria for catagory II.
Considering all the required criteria above is met (Atleast two questions in catagory I were answered as "yes", and atleast one question in catagory II was answered as "yes"), the person must meet the requirments listed below, for the criteria to be valid.
(III) The disturbance causes clinically significant impairments in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.
The criteria the person met is valid if the behaviors met in the criteria causes great impairments in the persons social interaction, job, or other social or living skills.
(IV) There is no clinically significant general delay in language (E.G. single words used by age 2 years, communicative phrases used by age 3 years)
The criteria the person met is valid if the person had no delay in speech development (if the person did have speech delays, the criteria for High Functioning Autism might be met)
(V) There is no clinically significant delay in cognitive development or in the development of age-appropriate self help skills, adaptive behavior (other than in social interaction) and curiosity about the environment in childhood.
The criteria the person met is valid if the person did not have a noticable delay in cognative thinking, for example, could answer "yes/no" questions at the appropriate age level, if they could feed and dress themselves at the appropriate age level, and if the person showed an interest in the environment around them at the appropriate age level.
(VI) Criteria are not met for another specific Pervasive Developmental Disorder or Schizophrenia.
The criteria the person met is invalid if they meet all of the criteria for for another disorder in the PDD spectrum, or Schizephrenia.
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