High-functioning autism is one of the disorders of autism that is not accompanied by delays in intellectual development. It is difficult to recognize because there are no noticeable developmental delays, such as cognitive skills, making it difficult to diagnose among developmental disabilities. It is a behavioral disorder that usually appears before the age of 3 and is characterized by difficulty forming social relationships with others, delayed language development, narrow interests, and preoccupation with specific objects.

Can high-functioning autism be called Asperger’s syndrome?

  High-functioning autism is a disorder that is not accompanied by a delay in intellectual development, whereas Asperger’s syndrome is a disorder that is not accompanied by a delay in intellectual development and is not accompanied by a delay in language development. High-functioning autism with delayed language development was previously thought to be different from Asperger’s syndrome, but recent research has shown that high-functioning autism and Asperger’s syndrome are increasingly converging on similar outcomes rather than separating them. High-functioning autism is not an official diagnosis, and is diagnosed as an “autism spectrum disorder” or ASD.

High-functioning autism is characterized by

1. Difficulties with social communication and sustaining interpersonal relationships

  One of the hallmarks of high-functioning autism is difficulty with socialization, interpersonal relationships, and communication.

• It is difficult to understand communication that uses vague rather than precise expressions.
• Difficulty intuitively understanding the mood of others.
• It’s hard to grasp the implicit mood of a situation or place.

  Because they are not good at imagining with vague expressions, they tend to take what they are told at face value or say what comes to mind. They are also clumsy at sharing their feelings with others and have difficulty reading the mood of a situation, so communication often becomes one-way instead of two-way. These characteristics contribute to their difficulties in interpersonal relationships.

2. Obsession with certain things and narrow interests

  You are easily excited or engrossed in areas that interest you, but can quickly lose interest in areas that don’t interest you. Once you start focusing, you don’t care what’s going on around you, and you can only focus on a specific area. This trait often manifests itself as a strength in different roles.

3. Comfort with structure and rules

  Because you have a strong commitment to the rules of behavior you set for yourself, you may feel disoriented when things change suddenly, such as at work, or when things are canceled against your will.

Secondary disorders of high-functioning autism in adulthood

  Currently, autism is considered to be one of the developmental disorders that is caused by congenital rather than acquired factors, so it does not develop suddenly in adulthood. However, high-functioning autism is often only diagnosed in adulthood after a person has visited a healthcare provider. This is because people with high-functioning autism are often unaware of their autism due to their cognitive and intellectual development in early childhood, and are only diagnosed with high-functioning autism as they age and develop secondary disorders due to factors such as environmental changes and social stress. Because people with high-functioning autism have difficulty gaining understanding from those around them, they often do not receive adequate support and develop secondary disorders, such as anxiety disorders, adjustment disorders, and panic disorders.

  In future columns, we’ll discuss how people with high-functioning autism can continue to work and examples of jobs that are suitable.

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