Sometimes the text book definitions are hard to picture what it really means in practical terms. Here is a list that is in slightly more laymen's terms.

Characteristics of Asperger's Syndrome (AS)

Scocial Characteristics:

§         Difficulty accepting compliments

§         Immature manners (act about 2/3 his or her age)

§         Impulsive when asked his opinion (no sugar coating to spare the other person's feelings)

§         Shyness

§         Avoiding eye contact

§         Anxiety about being able to 'fit in'

§         Bizarre sense of humor (they don't get the punch line of a 'regular' joke, but their own punch lines are not funny to others)

§         Difficulty with social pleasantries (when coming over to your house he may go straight to the TV and change the channel without greeting you or respecting the channel you were watching)

§         Difficulty consoling others. If someone tells them about something that is making them sad, he may respond “You're depressing me.”

§         Strong expression of likes and dislikes. In a restaurant they may say to the waiter “I hate onions!”

§         Rigid adherence to rules, with no flexibility

§         Excessive talking, especially when nervous

§         Difficulty distinguishing between acquaintance and friendship

§         Limited clothing preference, wears the same thing all the time

§         Difficulty judging the personal space of others (stand too close)

§         Difficulty distinguishing sincerity from sarcasm (other kids take terrible advantage of this)

Physical Manifestations:

• Hypersensitivity to any or all of the 5 senses
• Clumsiness
• Difficulty with balance and coordination
• Unusual posture
• Problems with gross and fine motor skills
• Sleep difficulties
• Verbosity
• Poor personal hygiene (possibly sensitivity to grooming products + they don't see how others perceive them)

Cognitive Characteristics:

• Confusions during times of stress
• Difficulty reading social cues such as the other person's interest (or lack of) in a one-sided conversation
• Inability to 'read between the lines'
• Literal interpretations of sayings, phrases, metaphors and expressions
• Dependence on step by step instructions (no multi-tasking)
• Not giving consideration to other people's schedules, priorities or agendas
• Difficulty 'putting themselves in someone else's shoes' (how would they feel in that situation?)
• Appear to lack 'common sense'
• May have hidden self-anger or resentment of others
• Do not adjust well to changes in plans, routines or surroundings (they don't like change and don't like surprises)

In the workplace, some of the following behaviors may be observed:

• Avoidance of socializing, or “small talk”
• Conscientious of punctuality
• Vulnerability (seen as a push-over)
• Difficulty with team work
• Difficulty accepting compliments (his response may be to cut himself down)
• Totally shutting down like a computer crashing when not being able to cope with sensory overload
• Inability to prioritize (his system may be to do the things on his list in chronological order, not in order of importance)
• Difficulty starting a project (while possessing and amazing eye for detail, there is great difficulty seeing the big picture or knowing how to start)
• Are uncomfortable with authority figures
• Enjoy mentoring new employees
• Extreme difficulty writing reports (doesn't know where to start, what you want to know, what is important or what isn't)
• Rigid adherence to rules, procedures and codes
• Asking lots of questions (the internal dialogue of step by step instructions is how they mentally or maybe even verbally 'talk' themselves through the task)

Multiple Diagnostic Conditions, which may occur simultaneously or not at all:

• Learning Disability
• Attention Deficit Disorder
• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
• Central Auditory Processing Disorder
• Hyperlexia
• Dysgraphia
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Non-verbal Learning Disorder
• Hypertension
• Semantic Pragmatic Language Disorder
• Tourette's Syndrome
• Dysthymia
• Dyspraxia

If many of the symptoms are familiar, but AS is ruled out (by a professional) maybe try researching the following:

§         Angelman's Syndrome

§         Rhett's Syndrome

§         Pervasive Developmental Disorder

§         Autism

§         Non-verbal Learning Disorder