Another important defining characteristic of AS is that people who seem to have it are often gifted intellectually,

While only a small percentage of individuals with autism are considered to be high functioning (without mental retardation), all children with AS have average to above average intelligence. In fact, many with AS may be intellectually gifted, which may mask the many difficulties they experience from adults and peers alike (Wing, 1998). The ever-present problems that individuals with AS face in socialization and peer rejection throughout the life span are what truly constitutes it as a PDD, influencing all aspects of their daily lives (Frith & Happe). (Safran, 2001, p. 151)

Because one of the most difficult issues facing those with AS is associated with emotion and socialization, as they often lack skills to recognize normal social cues such as facial and body expressions, the nonverbals that most of us take for...
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