What Are Common Differences In The Way A Person On The Autism Spectrum Approaches Making Friends With Other People?

Oct. 23, 2008 -- Question: What are common differences in the way a person on the autism spectrum approaches making friends with other people?

Answer: I think social interaction is an interesting commentary because there is the impression that autistic individuals shy away from social interaction and I think that's probably not correct. Many of them really want to have friends, really don't know how to have friends and how to gage others that they frequently will talk about topics that they're interested in but don't realize that the person they're talking with is not interested in that topic. So I think that yes, they may shy away or they may turn other people off because of the way that they try to interact with others.