What Are Common Differences In The Way A Person On The Autism Spectrum Communicates What They Want And Need?

Oct. 23, 2008 -- Question: What are common differences in the way a person on the autism spectrum communicates what they want and need?

Answer: Differences on the autism spectrum in terms of communicating wants and needs really depends on the level of functioning of that person as particularly as it relates to their receptive and expressive language. So a child who has very limited language may simply use his language to request, "I want cookie," "I want juice," or whatever. A higher functioning person is much more able to communicate their wants and needs, although they may have very concrete ways of doing that as opposed to using more abstract concepts or larger concepts or using lengthy sentences.