Individuals with autism can often struggle to express their thoughts and feelings using conventional verbal language. As a result, there are many different methods for individuals on the spectrum to communicate their emotions, such as through physical gestures or by producing sound.
Individuals with autism often have a hard time communicating. There are a few methods that could be used when communicating with an individual with autism.
We’ve gathered five of the most typical ways people with autism communicate below. Even verbally proficient people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have their own ways of communicating. The majority of communication is non-linguistic and relies on body language, gestures, and tone of voice, despite the fact that we often conceive of it as a language-based activity. Let’s examine these communication techniques while keeping in mind that we’ll mostly be talking about the social communication abilities seen in high-functioning people with ASD.
Nonverbal Communication, first
Many ASD sufferers depend primarily on non-verbal communication methods and seldom acquire language abilities. These cover a broad variety of actions, including using:
- Gestures
- Images or renderings
- crying, as well as other expressive noises
- physically pointing a person’s hand in the direction of what they desire
Despite the potential for communication issues, via context cues and repetition, parents and other caregivers often develop highly competent reading skills for these non-linguistic signals. The National Autistic Society in the United Kingdom contains a plethora of information about nonverbal communication.
Echolalia 2.
The repeating of words and phrases that individuals have heard before, maybe in a beloved book or television show, is referred to as echolalia. These expressions may or may not “fit” the situation in which they are used, but they usually do so by referring to a specific object. In order to try to understand what their kid may be attempting to express when they use specific words, parents of autistic children are recommended to watch the shows in which these phrases are stated.
3. Emphasizing Word Meanings in Their Literal Forms
ASD sufferers often have difficulty comprehending metaphors and idiomatic language. A problem comprehending jokes and comedy, which often depend on a sarcastic tone to communicate the speaker’s genuine meaning, is another consequence of this feature. Focusing on the “important words” in a sentence is a defining characteristic of how people with autism communicate. Speak in straightforward, straightforward words without using idioms or figures of speech that obscure the “real message” you’re attempting to get across as one of the greatest methods to accommodate this communication style.
4. Switching Between Topics
Ability to “remain on topic” is one communication challenge faced by people with autism. Their thoughts could seem scattered or unfocused because their brains are working so fast and digesting so many inputs. This isn’t frequently the case, however; unless an ASD person expresses a wish to stop talking about a certain subject (in which case you should absolutely move on), they’re usually receptive to bringing up earlier subjects of discussion.
5. Speaking while looking away
The fifth method of communication used by people with autism is the fact that they often talk to you while avoiding eye contact. Because they are very sensitive to sensory nuances, people with this syndrome may experience information overload while staring into someone else’s eyes. Some people may choose to completely close their eyes when speaking in order to concentrate just on the conversational inputs. Building better communication with those who have ASD requires an understanding of and accomodation for this diversity of communication.
Top 20 Best Applied Behavior Analysis Programs is a related resource.
Our goal was to draw attention to some of the most typical communicative characteristics of people with autism. The website of the Indiana Resource Center for Autism is an excellent source for a more comprehensive list and other information regarding ASD. We hope that this list of the many ways that people with autism communicate has helped you learn more about these unusual communication techniques.
Individuals with autism have difficulties communicating. There are many ways that they can communicate though. Some of the ways are through body language, sound, and writing. Reference: autism and communication difficulties.
Related Tags
- autism communication strategies pdf
- autism communication tools
- non verbal communication strategies for autism
- autism communication skills checklist
- how to communicate with autistic child
Janice is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. She graduated from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Special Education. She also holds a Master of Science in Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) from Queen’s University, Belfast. She has worked with and case managed children and youth with autism and other intellectual and/or developmental disabilities in home and residential setting since 2013.